Gurugram’s power infra fails to match with burgeoning growth

GURUGRAM: With every passing year this summer, especially in May and June, also resulted in the residents of Gurugram consuming power at record levels at 3.5 crore units.

The effects were that in most residential areas like Palam Vihar, Sushant Lok the transformers broke down and the power cuts lasted for one to two days in the month of June when the temperature crossed 46-degree celsius.

Four months hence in October tackle Gurugram's deadly air it is mandatory under Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) to ban diesel gensets but that too is likely to be implemented in Gurugram fully. As Gurugram gets prepared for its fourteenth assembly elections the angry voters are again demanding accountability from their candidates on the revamping of power infrastructure which is in line with the city's burgeoning growth. It is estimated that there are 10,000 diesel generators that are presently functional in the city. Moreover, some of the residential societies are only dependent on diesel generators for their power supply.

For a city where many parts still reel under power cuts of 3-6 hours during summers, residents have to rely on diesel gensets for their power needs. While the cost of power supplied ranges from Rs 6 -7 per unit, service providers of diesel generators are charging their customers an exorbitant amount ranging from Rs 11 to Rs 20 per units.

According to the officials of the Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam, the power infrastructure can only be set up when the builders transfer the external development charges to them which as of now has not been done.

In a case that is being heard in the Punjab and Haryana High Court, it is estimated that the builders owe the government agencies the EDC to the tune of Rs 15, 250 crores.

The BJP on its part claims that the ambitious smart grid project will improve the power situation.