Amid frequent outages, discom assures normal power supply within one week

Ranchi: With power demands far outstripping power supplies by as much as 500MW during peak morning and evening hours, widespread blackouts were witnessed across the state. The state-owned power distribution company, Jharkhand Bijli Vitaran Nigam Ltd.(JBVNL), however, assured the consumers that efforts are on at the highest levels to ensure normalcy within the next one week.
Talking to TOI, JBVNL managing director K K Verma said, “Our discom owes around Rs 750 crore to power generators (gencos) and suppliers because of our power purchases. As a result, the country’s power exchanges have slapped a moratorium on additional power purchases by Jharkhand. We have taken up the matter at the highest levels with the state government, for urgent release of funds, so that all unpaid power bills pending with JBVNL, can be cleared in full and normal power supplies from various agencies can be ensured at the earliest.”
The state government has agreed in principle to release the funds to JBVNL and the process has already begun. “We expect the funds to be released within a week and we will clear our unpaid power purchase bills. Accordingly, the current power crisis in the state is expected to be fully resolved within the next seven days,” Verma said.
Meanwhile, power department officials said the state is currently facing reduced power supplies from the central pool by as much as 500 MW during the peak morning hours from 6 am to 10 am and again from 6 pm to 11 pm during the peak evening hours. Further problems have cropped up after the state’s lone hydel power station at Sikidiri, some 40km from Ranchi, had to suspend generation after the fall in water levels at the Getalsud Dam, to ensure drinking water supplies to the city. The shutdown of Sikidiri Hydel has further led to a shortfall of around 100 MW during the peak evening hours, they added.
Against a demand of 2,600 MW, Jharkhand is getting around 2,100 MW resulting in a shortfall of around 500 MW. “We have been left with no option but to enforce load shedding, particularly during the peak morning and evening hours,” JBVNL officials said.