Power Dept to spend Rs 300 crore in 3 years

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, October 23

The UT Electricity Department has planned to spend over Rs 300 crore to improve infrastructure and buy power to meet the increasing demand. The department has proposed many schemes in this regard in the business plan it submitted to the Joint Electricity Regulatory Commission (JERC).

The commission held a public hearing today to seek views of residents on the plan. According to the Electricity Act, the department is required to prepare a plan in this regard every three years and get it approved from the JERC after a public hearing.

While the department had publicised the schedule of the hearing, only two persons turned up at the venue. They raised the issue of the delay in getting the NOC for the installation of solar panels.

The Electricity Department has also proposed to fill vacant 243 posts in the next three years. The department also presented a plan to reduce the transmission loss from 13.85 per cent to 12.65 per cent. It proposed to install new transformers to improve the electricity supply.