27% rise in power consumption in January first week, Punjab facing technical snags; but PSPCL says no power cuts

In the first week of January (January 1-January 7), PSPCL had met the demand of 8,852 MW this year (on average) compared to 7,051 MW during the first seven days of last year which was 26% more compared to last year. The overall power consumption from January 1-January 7 this year was 1,049 MUs compared to 829 MUs during the same period in 2022 which was 27% more compared to last year.

In the first week of January (January 1-January 7), PSPCL had met the demand of 8,852 MW this year (on average) compared to 7,051 MW during the first seven days of last year which was 26% more compared to last year.

On Sunday, Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) leader Bikram Singh Majithia tweeted: “Punjab facing power cuts at a time when electricity consumption is at its lowest. @PSPCLPb pushed to brink by @AAPPunjab govt, does not even have funds for basic maintenance. State looking ahead at total chaos in summer. Paddy transplantation could also be affected. #Punjab.”

Reacting to it, PSPCL officials maintained that there were no power cuts in the state despite the consumption being far more on the higher side and the PSPCL has been meeting the extra demand as well.

PSPCL officials maintained that due to foggy weather, solar generation had been reduced to the minimum and even due to extreme cold weather, hydel generation too had come down.

“In the past three units of Ropar and Talwandi Sabo thermal power plants had developed technical snags, which have been restored now. There is no power cut as of now,” said a PSPCL official while talking to The Indian Express.

As per the data received from the load dispatch centre of PSPCL, by 6 pm on Sunday the total generation of power through different sources in Punjab was 4,529 MW out of which 3,270 MW was being produced by independent thermal power producers and only 942 MW was generated by state-owned thermal power producers. While there was 236 MW hydel generation and zero solar generation, 81 MW generation was from other renewable energy sources. The rest of the gap was being fulfilled by drawing power from northern grid or by banking on other arrangements, sources said.

While PSPCL is maintaining that there is zero power cut, sources say that technical snags or maintenance shutdowns are causing long power cuts in many areas of the state.

Apart from this, 300 units free (per month) power scheme for domestic sector has also increased electricity consumption, which has added load to the existing system, sources said.

As consumers get zero power bill after consuming 600 units bimonthly, many tend to consume the entire limit. But in the previous years they had been consuming far less, PSPCL sources added.

The 300 units per month free power was implemented from July 1 last year as part of the poll promise by the AAP government and as a result of this, in December nearly 89% domestic consumers had got zero power bill in the state.

Manik Goyal, an RTI activist and a resident of Mansa, said, “In Mansa city area, we are facing unscheduled power cuts. In villages the condition is the worst.”

He tweeted, “Punjab is facing long power cuts for the first time in winters due to mismanagement of @bhagwantmann govt. Electricity consumption is the lowest in winter, still govt is unable to fulfill demand. If this is the situation in winters one shudders to think what will happen in paddy season.”