HYDERABAD: Farmers sowing paddy for rabi as against the Government advice to opt for irrigated dry crops will not get power supply to their pumpsets beyond March-end.

They have been asked to switch over to ID crops to enable the AP Transco to tide over the present power crisis and ensure the standard seven-hour supply to them.

They have, however, been offered three incentives for opting ID crops like groundnut, maize, soyabean, sunflower -- supply of seeds and sprinklers at 50 per cent subsidy and digging of a pond at an elevated point in the field free of cost under National Rural Employment Guarantee Programme.

The farmers have been advised to adopt SRI (System of Rice Intensification) if they are compelled by the soils of their fields to go for paddy.

If they implement SRI, they will be offered cono-weeders etc at 75 per cent subsidy

These steps were announced by Chief Minister Y. S. Rajasekhara Reddy as part of a plan to overcome the power crisis during a video-conference with District Collectors here on Monday. Power and Agriculture Ministers Mohd Ali Shabbir and N. Raghuveera Reddy, and Transco CMD Rachel Chatterjee were present.

The Chief Minister said the demand for electricity, now hovering around 170 million units per day, was expected to reach 180 mu by February and an all-time high of 190 mu by March-end. As there was a shortage of 800 MW-2,000 MW, power cut was continued over villages. "If necessary, industries would also be subjected to the cut".

Domestic demand

He asked the farmers to harvest crops by March-end as the domestic demand would go up steeply by then.

He said the supply to farm sector would be for seven hours only in two spells -- four hours during daytime and three hours at night.

This had been the arrangement for the past four years, two of them during Telugu Desam period.

Dr. Reddy said Transco was buying 500 MW of power paying a heavy price of Rs 6.27 per unit.

Only three firms responded to the tenders issued to buy 500 MW additionally, offering only 400 MW, that too at over Rs 6.50 per unit.

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