New Delhi, Oct 29 (IANS): Congress General Secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Thursday wrote a letter to Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on the plight of the weavers in the Prime Minister's Lok Sabha constituency of Varanasi.

Priyanka said the weavers were suffering after the electricity was being charged at the new rate. She demanded that the government restore the UPA-era scheme of charging weavers at a flat rate.

In the letter to the Chief Minister, Priyanka Gandhi, who is also the in-charge of Congress in Uttar Pradesh said, "It has come to my notice that the weavers of Varanasi are very saddened and are in trouble. The world famous Banarasi silk sarees are now struggling to meet their daily needs. Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the wrong policies of the government their business have been hit worst."

The Congress leader said the weavers have brought recognition to Uttar Pradesh across the globe with their fine works and the government must help them in these tough times.

She said, "In 2006, the UPA government had announced a scheme to provide electricity to weavers at a flat rate. But your government by ending the scheme is doing injustice to the weavers."

She also claimed that when the weaver community was on strike on the electricity bill issue, they were assured by the government that their demands would be met. "But still their demands have not been met," she said.

Priyanka said that the weaver community has three demands: electricity at flat rate, stopping harassment in the name of recovery of pending bills, and the electricity connection of the weavers should not be disconnected.

She said that the disconnected electricity connections of a few weavers should also be restored immediately.

"I hope you shall take the issues of the weaver community seriously and take positive steps to solve their problems," Priyanka Gandhi Vadra added.