‘Pvt power players not allowed’

There are three reasons. Enough power is not available from the grid, the distribution network is not up to the mark and buying power from the open market – at Rs 8-9 per unit – is prohibitively expensive.

Why must Gurgaon residents suffer long power cuts everyday?

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There are three reasons. Enough power is not available from the grid, the distribution network is not up to the mark and buying power from the open market – at Rs 8-9 per unit – is prohibitively expensive.

How do you plan to meet Gurgaon’s power hunger, which is increasing at the rate of 20 per cent annually?
The actual rate is 15 per cent, which is still very high. In the next three years, we will set up a number of power plants to add 5,000 MW capacity.

Three years is a long time. Do you have a short-term solution?
We have entered into short-term power purchase agreements with a number of power producers. We will be buying power from them at the rate of Rs 8-9 per unit, even though we sell at Rs 4 to 5 per unit.

Many townships have not been provided Nigam connections and their residents pay Rs 10 per unit for power generated through captive power plants. Is it fair?
It is illegal for real estate developers to do so, although I am not aware of such townships. Only Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVN) is authorised to distribute power in Gurgaon. We will take action against such developers.

How are private developers responsible for the power crisis?
Firstly, they did not get their required load sanctioned from DHBVN. They also did not reserve sites for the construction of electricity sub-stations in their townships.

(Anurag Agarwal, MD DHBVN)