The Hindu Business Line : 12 States heading for power crisis: Assocham

MAHARASHTRA may not the only State grappling with power shortage, with 11 other States expected to face similar crisis as the summer months advance, a survey by the Assocham has said.

Besides Maharashtra, Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Bihar and Meghalaya are also expected to face acute power shortages, according to the Assocham Eco Pulse Survey.

The energy deficit in Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat, and Haryana ranged from 7 per cent to 25 per cent in April , the Chamber said in a release.

Maharashtra, which recently faced a furore over long power cuts, is facing an energy deficit of 19 per cent. The peak shortage of nearly 4,000 MW has resulted in load shedding ranging from 4-8 hours a day in various regions acrossMaharashtra.

Madhya Pradesh requires 3003 million units but has only 2,250 mu resulting in a deficit of 25 per cent while in Gujarat, the power deficit is 12.7 per cent.

The availability in the State is only 4,766 mu against the requirement of 5,459 mu, according to figures for April.

In Uttar Pradesh, the deficit is almost 18 per cent with the demand-supply gap well over 800 mu.

In terms of region wise comparison, the survey found that the highly industrialised western region was the worst hit in terms of energy deficit, which was 16.7 per cent in April.

The availability in the region was only 15,883 mu against the requirement of 19,065 mu. Northern region, where Uttar Pradesh is the worst hit, faced a deficit of 7.9 per cent with the demand-supply gap of 1,108 mu.

Delhi, Himachal Pradesh and Rajasthan are comparatively better off, while Jammu & Kashmir, Haryana and Punjab are badly hit, according to the survey.

Bihar, with 19 per cent deficit is the badly hit State in the eastern region.

The southern region is better off facing deficit of only 0.8 per cent. Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Kerala and Tamil Nadu had shortages of less than 1 per cent.

The survey said that the business leaders were concerned about the grim power situation in the country.

Ninety-nine per cent of them blamed power theft, leakages and transmission and commercial losses as the main culprit.

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