Palwal units reel under power outages, plaints go unaddressed

Bijendra Ahlawat

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Palwal, February 2

Industrial and manufacturing units located in Parithla here are grappling with power outage, severely affecting their routine operations. Poor and weak electrical distribution network has been reported to be the main reason behind the problem in the industrial hub.

Disruption of 2-3 hours on average

An average power disruption of two to three hours on any day has been a major cause for concern for the local manufacturing units. — Rajeev Mehra, President, Palwal Industries Association

“An average power disruption of two to three hours on any day has been a major cause for concern for the local manufacturing units,” says Palwal Industries Association (PIA) President Rajeev Mehra. He said the problem persisted due to various reasons, including the breakdown in supply due to overloaded feeders. “Of eight hours, our factory workers had to sit idle for more than three hours on Saturday due to the unscheduled cuts in the power supply,” said Mehra.

“While the PNG is not available, the cost of upgrading the generators is too high,” said Mukesh Mohta, another entrepreneur. He said the majority of the units here had to shut down their operations as there were no alternative means to cope with the disrupted supply as the diesel gensets had also been prohibited in the NCR.

“Our major demand is the availability of 24*7 power supply and basic civic infrastructure facility to ensure the industry’s survival and growth in the region,” said Rajesh Kumar, an industrialist. It is alleged that the officials concerned hardly redressed the grievances in the region. Claiming that the industry was ready to completely shed the use of gensets if there was no interruption in the supply, he said despite claims of surplus power in the state, the frequent breakdowns had led to a rise in the production cost or losses.

He alleged that almost all supply feeders in the area tended to have frequent breakdowns due to overloading. Manpower shortage and weak infrastructural network had resulted in persistent breakdown, it is reported.

Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam Executive Engineer Kuldeep Attri said there was no power outage in the industrial sector as there was adequate availability. However, the disruptions could have occurred due to local factors such as a breakdown in the network owing to numerous reasons, he added.