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With 4,000 kw connection, magnificent Ram temple to outshine U.P’s ‘power centre’
Covering nearly 2.7 acres of land with its complex, the Ram Mandir is ready for “pran pratishtha” (consecration ceremony) of Ram Lalla (the child Ram) on January 22 though the full temple consisting of three floors is expected to be complete only by December 2025.
The world will witness Ayodhya glowing in a resplendent harmony of divinity and powerful modernity when the work on the under-construction grand Ram temple is completed.
This is because the temple, one of the biggest shrines to be built in India after Independence, will be lit by at least 4,000 kilowatt (kw) electricity load that will dwarf the power requirement of the state-of-the art Lok Bhavan, the five-storey chief minister’s secretariat here and will be four times that of the five-star Taj hotel in Lucknow.
Covering nearly 2.7 acres of land with its complex, the Ram Mandir is ready for “pran pratishtha” (consecration ceremony) of Ram Lalla (the child Ram) on January 22 though the full temple consisting of three floors is expected to be complete only by December 2025.
The Shri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust that is supervising the construction has proposed to take an electricity connection as high as 4,000 kilowatt (kw) to meet the power requirement of the temple complex.
“They are increasing the load in phases with the completion of the phased construction of the temple.
The trust has proposed to subscribe to a 4,000-kw power connection for the temple when the entire temple is ready,” Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Ltd (UPPCL) executive engineer, Ayodhya division, Pradeep Verma said.
“Currently, the temple already has a 1,200-kw power connection in the name of Trust general secretary Champat Rai,” he added.
The temple, according to him, will also be connected to an independent feeder to get uninterrupted 24x7 electricity. Currently, the temple draws power from an independent feeder meant for Sri Ram Hospital.
The 4,000-kw connection proposed to be sought for the temple will surpass the power demand of the fully air-conditioned Lok Bhavan that runs on 3,600 kw load and will also dwarf the load of the Taj hotel in Lucknow, that is said to have a power connection of only 1,000 kw that is lower than even the current load being used by the under-construction temple.
According to Verma, there is no other power connection of 4,000-kw in Ayodhya town and there may be only a few connections (mainly of sugar mills, industries etc) of this magnitude in Ayodhya district.
“A power connection of 4,000 kw is quite big and can meet the power requirement of 1,000 houses with each house having a 4-kw power connection. And this only shows how great the temple is going to be,” another UPPCL official said.
Overall power demand of temple city to surge
Completion of a series of projects that are underway in Ayodhya to develop it as a modern and spiritual city is expected to drive up the electricity demand of the town as a whole. The energy corporations are developing the infrastructure accordingly to meet the future requirement.
Connections of a total load of 1,500 kw have been sought for the tent cities being set up in the town.
“We expect the maximum power demand of Ayodhya to reach or even cross 100 (megawatt) mw in the years to come, that will be 60 mw more than the current demand of 40 mw,” Verma said.
DISTRIBUTION, TRANSMISSION
CAPACITIES BEING AUGMENTED
“To meet the additional power demand, we are adding 30 mva additional distribution capacity by setting up a new distribution sub-station and enhancing the capacity of transformers in the town. The total present distribution capacity is 180 mva and it is more than enough to handle the current demand,” he claimed.
Side-by-side, the UP Power Transmission Corporation (UPPTCL) is also setting up a 220 kva transmission sub-station that will exclusively cater to the power transmission requirement of the temple city.
“The 220-kva Dakshin Nagar sub-station that we are establishing in Ayodhya with an investment of more than ₹92 crore to handle the entire transmission load and also to evacuate the solar power to be generated there by a plant to be set up the NTPC will be ready by March 2024,” UPPTCL managing director P Guruprasad said.
He claimed this would be the first 220 kva sub-station to be ready in 12 months in the state as usually such sub-stations take 18 months to be completed.
“The new sub-station will take care of power supply to Ayodhya town without any hiccups for next 10 years,” he said.
