Says UP getting biggest share from central pool
IN A strong rebuttal to Mulayam Singh Yadav government’s accusations that the Centre was discriminating against UP on the power front, Union power scretary RV Shahi today claimed that UP was getting the highest amount of electricity from the Central pool in the country.
“UP’s share in the Central sector powerhouses situated in the Northern region is the highest among all other states in the country,” Shahi told Hindustan Times on telephone from Delhi. He said the allegations leveled against the Centre that it was providing less power to UP vis-à-vis other states held no water and were incorrect. He said UP’s share in the Central sector powerhouses and in the unallocated quota put together was around 4,000 mw, which, he claimed, was the highest in the country. For example against UP’s 27 per cent share, which it was getting even today, the share of Delhi was only 20 per cent, Haryana and Punjab 11 pc each, Rajasthan 13 pc, Himachal Pradesh 6 pc and J&K 8 pc, Shahi revealed.
When asked if the Centre was giving UP less electricity from its discretionary quota compared to some other States, the power secretary clarified that UP’s 27 pc share also included the power available to it from the Centre’s discretionary quota. He said at times the Centre did prefer other States in allocating more power from its discretionary quota for their good track record in maintaining the grid discipline, unlike UP, which had ignored all warnings against violating the grid code.
{{/usCountry}}When asked if the Centre was giving UP less electricity from its discretionary quota compared to some other States, the power secretary clarified that UP’s 27 pc share also included the power available to it from the Centre’s discretionary quota. He said at times the Centre did prefer other States in allocating more power from its discretionary quota for their good track record in maintaining the grid discipline, unlike UP, which had ignored all warnings against violating the grid code.
{{/usCountry}}Shahi attributed UP’s power shortage basically to its failure in setting up any new power house during the last 10 years and very low Plant Load Factor (PLF) of its existing power houses. “The PLF of the Obra thermal powerhouse, for instance, is only 42 pc of its capacity, Panki 49 pc, Harduaganj 15 pc and Parichha 40 pc,” he said adding, “The national PLF average was as high as 74 pc and that of NTPC powerhouses 88 pc. Leave alone the NTPC, if UP’s powerhouses achieved even the national average, its own generation would increase by 1100 mw,” Shahi revealed and said the NTPC was ready to make the services of its engineers to UP for modernising its powerhouses to increase their PLF.