Acute power crisis in Nepal

Residents in most parts of Kathmandu Valley woke up to a cold and powerless Wednesday morning as Nepal Electricity Authority began its 51-hour weekly power outage across the country.

Updated on: Dec 31, 2009, 01:25:23 IST

Hindustan Times | By Utpal Parashar, Kathmandu

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Residents in most parts of Kathmandu Valley woke up to a cold and powerless Wednesday morning as Nepal Electricity Authority began its 51-hour weekly power outage across the country.

Power cuts which nearly doubled from the existing 28-hour per week as a result of low water level in rivers is severely affecting the Himalayan nation for the second consecutive winter.

While the current demand for power is 845 MW, the NEA is also to provide only 450 MW to consumers due to reduced generation.

Nepal, which has several large and small rivers crisscrossing the country, has a potential to generate nearly 80,000 MW of power, but only a fraction of it has been exploited.

In 2008-09, NEA owned power stations generated 1839 GWh of electricity.

Lack of political stability, natural causes, technical exigencies and the 10-year-long civil war are reasons for the large gap between supply and demand.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Utpal Parashar
A seasoned senior journalist, I have nearly three decades of experience across print, digital, and online platforms, covering political transitions, insurgencies, environmental issues, and development stories in India and Nepal. I am skilled in breaking news, leading editorial teams and launch of newspaper editions. I am adept at leveraging digital trends and social media to expand global reach, with a strong ethical foundation and a reputation for impactful journalism. An alumnus of Asian College of Journalism, I joined Hindustan Times in New Delhi as a trainee reporter in May 1997. Over the years, I have been posted in Dehradun, Kathmandu (Nepal) and Guwahati. Currently, as Senior Assistant Editor at Hindustan Times, I lead a team reporting on India’s northeastern states. My work involves in-depth analysis, and engaging multimedia storytelling across formats, including text, photo, video, and interactive content. I am skilled in producing timely, shareable content, leveraging digital platforms and social media to engage global audiences. Throughout my career with the Hindustan Times, I have led diverse editorial teams, designed capacity-building activities, and supported reporters in developing strong story ideas, ethical reporting practices, digital skills, and fact-checking techniques. As Senior Assistant Editor for Northeast India, I have been responsible for guiding correspondents through complex political, humanitarian, and community-level stories using multimedia formats. Earlier, as Foreign Correspondent in Nepal, I produced extensive reporting during Nepal’s democratic transition and the 2015 earthquake and its aftermath.Read More

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