GUWAHATI: Amidst growing concerns about Assam’s increasing power demands and rumours of potential tariff hikes, the Ministry of Power allocated 121 MegaWatts (MW) less than the promised 300 MW to the state on Monday.
To be provided from the National Capital Power Station in Dadri, Uttar Pradesh, the ministry allocated 179 MW power to Assam.
The official letter from the ministry to the Chairperson of Central Electricity Authority (CEA) stated that based on the power given up by the Delhi government from the NTPC Dadri-I Plant and the request from the Assam government, it has decided to allocate the 179 MW power to Assam starting October 1 for a year at tariff rates fixed by the Central Electricity Regulation Commission.
The power ministry urged the Central Electricity Authority (CEA) to implement the said allocation from the effective date and keep all relevant stakeholders informed.
Acknowledging the allocation, Chief Minister Sarma took to a popular micro-blogging website, and wrote, “My heartfelt gratitude to Hon’ble Union Power Minister Shri @RajKSinghIndia ji for considering my personal request and allocating an additional 179 MW of power to the State. We remain committed to ensuring an adequate power supply to industries and households, further propelling Assam’s growth.”
On September 9, Assam’s Chief Minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma, held a meeting with Union Power Minister RK Singh in the national capital to address the state’s escalating power demands. During the meeting, Singh assured Sarma that the state would receive a minimum allocation of 300 MW to fulfil its power requirements.
Subsequently, on September 11, during the opening day of the Autumn session, Chief Minister Sarma informed the assembly about the unprecedented surge in the state’s power demand. Quoting numbers, Sarma had said that in the last four years, Assam’s power demand in peak-hours have gone up from 1600 MW to 2500 MW.
He had admitted that the state has exhausted its own generation capacity and is unable to meet the rising demand. To meet current demands, he had also informed that the state is actively entering into agreements with various power generation entities for long-term solutions.
