SRINAGAR, NOVEMBER 20: H. Rajesh Prasad, Principal Secretary, Power Development Department (PDD), reviewed the power supply situation in J&K, especially in the Kashmir valley, during a meeting with Managing Directors of Companies and all General Managers today. Engineers and senior officers of the department.
During the investigation, it was informed that an outage schedule was prepared according to the electricity availability in the region.
Accordingly, the Secretary General asked the engineers to strictly adhere to the schedule and emphasized that unplanned power outages will not be tolerated. He also emphasized that J&K should not attempt to overdraw power under any circumstances as this is important not only to stay within budget but also to maintain grid discipline and avoid undue interruptions in power supply.
It was also emphasized that in recent years, sufficient infrastructure has been created to increase the quality of energy supply in the region. Additionally, J&K availed loans under various Government of India schemes such as Atmanirbhar Bharat and LPS Rules, thereby clearing all outstanding debts of power generators accumulated over the years. However, under the plans committed by J&K to the GoI, a commitment has been made to minimize losses to ensure the viability of the sector.
In line with the commitment to reduce losses, the Secretary-General gave clear instructions to engineers to make all efforts to eliminate the danger of power theft by taking stringent enforcement measures. He requested that regular electricity supply be maintained in areas where people regularly pay for their consumption, and that measures such as metering and EU cabling should be taken as a priority in high-loss areas.
The Secretary General noted with deep concern that although more energy was sent to the valley this year than in the previous year, there was not much improvement in revenue realization. Therefore, he instructed the relevant authorities to ensure that the invoices are produced and distributed to consumers on time. He also instructed that power outages should be intervened immediately and malfunctions should be eliminated as soon as possible, and especially damaged Distribution Transformers (DT) should be replaced as soon as possible to prevent people from suffering.
In conclusion, the Chief Secretary reaffirmed the government’s unwavering commitment towards the stability and growth of the power sector in Jammu and Kashmir. The expected implementation of these directives will not only increase the reliability of power supply, but also strengthen the financial health of the energy sector by providing a resilient and responsive energy infrastructure for the people of the region.
news source (www.thekashmirmonitor.net)
