Although the Maharashtra government claims the state is free from distress load-shedding despite the coal crisis and the soaring demand for electricity due to the rising heat, consumer groups allege it is resorting to covert power cuts without announcing them officially. However, the allegation has been refuted by the state-owned power distribution utility.
“Instead of a planned load-shedding, they are enforcing it in a disguised manner… this is often passed as power cuts undertaken due to breakdowns and maintenance,” Pratap Hogade of Maharashtra Rajya Veej Grahak Sanghatana said.
He said the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) was shedding around half an hour to an hour of load across the state to make up for the gap between demand and supply.
Hogade claimed power supply to agricultural consumers was curtailed by two hours. Farmers got eight hours of electricity during the day or 10 hours at night, he said.
Similarly, the domestic, agricultural, and commercial consumers on around 3,000 of the 24,000 feeders, which get single-phase electricity supply, also had to face power cuts, Hogade added.
Ashish Tiwari, a former media professional and resident of Badlapur East, said apart from the scheduled power cuts for maintenance purposes, they had to face unscheduled load-shedding. “This happens regularly; the frequency of power cuts is very high… the quality of power supply is bad,” he said.
However, this was refuted by a senior MSEDCL officer, who attributed the power cuts to weather and maintenance. “We have to undertake planned shutdowns for pre-monsoon maintenance. Some of our equipment and lines are old and are hence impacted by the heat leading to breakdowns and tripping. We are replacing such lines in a phased manner,” the officer, who did not wish to be named, said.
Vijay Singhal, managing director, MSEDCL, too denied this claim. “There is no official or unofficial load-shedding. We have [adequate] power. In fact, we have surplus power. There might be local issues regarding transformers etc.”
Meanwhile, the state cabinet on Wednesday granted a one-year extension for the operationalisation of new and renewable energy projects worth 418 MW. Works on these projects have been delayed because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Eyebrows in the corridors of power were raised as there was power outage for about five minutes during the cabinet meeting. The power cut was reported when chief minister Uddhav Thackeray, who joined the meeting online, was speaking on the reservation to Other Backward Classes.