Power authorities unable to comply with EC order

The Election Commission's direction to the power authorities in the State to maintain uninterrupted power supply for three days including the day of polling (April 13) has evoked a negative response from the Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO).

Sources say the power authorities have expressed their inability to follow the EC's order under the present circumstances. The State is now in need of at least 800 megawatt or 1,000 MW of power additionally, which cannot be sourced due to two factors – non-availability of that much power in the open market and constraints in the power corridor to transmit power from surplus regions.

The TANGEDCO has conveyed to the Election Commission that if the Union government made a special allocation of 800 MW to 1,000 MW for the State, it would be able to ensure uninterrupted power supply on the specified days.

It may be recalled that on the eve of the day of polling during the Lok Sabha election in May 2009, several areas in northern and central parts of Chennai suffered blackout following tripping of Tondiarpet-Mylapore transmission lines.

Since Sunday (April 3), the TANGEDCO increased the quantum of power cut for High Tension (HT) consumers to 30 per cent from 20 per cent.

According to a senior official of the corporation, the energy demand in the State now is about 12,000 MW and the availability is just about 8,000 MW. Depending upon the availability of power in the market, the shortfall is being met. The decision to increase the quantum of power cut for the HT consumers was taken on the basis of the current situation. This would be reviewed on a daily basis, the official says.

The Southern India Mills' Association chairman J. Thulasidharan says the association had sought the rise in the quantum of power cut so that the tripping could be controlled. Frequent Shyam Prakash Gupta, chairman of Confederation of Indian Industry, Madurai Zone, said units in Madurai are constantly experiencing fluctuations in voltage.

According to P. Sitaraman, former president of the Kappalur Industrial Estate Manufacturers Association, industrial units are unable to plan any expansion in production capacity. P.S. Shivaprasad, President, Madurai Spinners Association, said the spinning sector is already hit hard by the increase in cotton prices and labour shortage.

(With inputs from M. Soundariya Preetha in Coimbatore and R. Sairam in Madurai)