Daily power supply in rural areas went up from average 12 hours to 20.6 hours in last five years: Centre
Amid power cuts in states such as Punjab and Haryana, the central government has claimed that there is no shortage of electricity in the country. It also added that power availability in rural areas has been increased.
It also claimed that in May, this year, the average availability of power in the rural areas was 22.17 hours. Photo: Divendra Singh/Gaon Connection
The Union Ministry of Power has claimed that the availability of power in rural areas has increased in the last five years and stated yesterday, on July 22, that it has gone up from an average of 12 hours in 2015-16 to 20.6 hours in the year 2020.
It also claimed that in May, this year, the average availability of power in the rural areas was 22.17 hours.
“Many States and UTs have reported 24×7 power supply other than the planned outages and interruptions due to unforeseen events,” read the ministry statement dated July 22.
This announcement has come at a time when several states such as Punjab and Haryana are witnessing frequent power cuts.
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Reportedly the agriculture sector in Punjab is not getting its promised eight-hour power supply. The domestic consumers are left to sweat it out because of long power cuts. besides, there is a ban on running of air conditioners in government offices.
However, the Ministry of Power claims that ‘there is no shortage of electricity in the country’.
“Against a peak demand of 200 Gigawatts (GWs), the established generation capacity is 382 GWs. Interruptions in the supply of electricity is generally on account of constraints in distribution network, or financial constraints with some Distribution Companies not having the money to pay for power,” the statement further informed.
This information was given by Union Minister of Power and New and Renewable Energy, RK Singh in a written reply in the Lok Sabha yesterday.
The Ministry also informed that the supply or distribution of electricity to consumers is ensured by the respective state governments or state power utilities. The Centre helps the states through its various schemes including DeenDayal Upadhyaya Gram Jyoti Yojana (DDUGJY), Integrated Power Development Scheme (IPDS) and Ujjwal Discom Assurance Yojana (UDAY) to help them to achieve the objective of providing uninterrupted power supply to all households.