The government of Delhi warned of a possible hitch in uninterrupted power supply to important establishments in the capital including Metro trains and hospitals amid a shortage of coal.
Following an emergency meeting to assess the situation, the power minister of Delhi, Satyendar Jain wrote to the Centre to request it to ensure adequate supply of coal to the power plants that supply electricity to the national capital.
A statement from the government read, “Due to disruption of power supply from Dadri-II and Unchahar power stations, there may be a problem in 24-hours power supply to many essential institutions, including Delhi Metro and Delhi government hospitals.”
Jain said that at present, about 25-30 per cent of the electricity demand in Delhi is met through these power stations and they face a shortage of coal.
He also said that the government was looking into the situation closely and making every effort in a bid to ensure that the people do not face any power outages in some areas of the capital.
The power minister went on, “These power stations play an important role in preventing blackouts in some parts of Delhi and are also essential to ensure the continuous supply of electricity to Delhi Metro Rail Corporation, hospitals and people in the upcoming summer season.”
The statement further said that the National Thermal Power Corporation’s (NTPC) Dadri-II and Jhajjar (Aravali), that were established to meet the power requirement in the country’s capital, have limited reserves of coal to function.
Delhi is supplied with 1,751 megawatt (MW) of electricity daily by the Dadri-II, Unchahar, Kahalgaon, Farakka and Jhajjar power plants with maximum supply of 728 MW from Dadri-II power station and 100 MW from the Unchahar station.
All these power plants are facing an acute coal shortage, according to the daily coal report of the National Power Portal. This has triggered blackouts across many parts of the country as states struggle to manage the record demand for electricity.
The Union government has asked states to stock up on coal by increasing their imports, apart from measures to increase coal supplies to the power plants.
Meanwhile, the All India Power Engineers Federation said that thermal plants across the country were facing coal shortages, indicating that a power crisis is looming in the country.