NEW DELHI: Good news guys! The Aam Admi Party has found support to implement its promise to slash power tariff by half in Delhi.
As per a report in the Times of India, the electrical engineers from UP say it is not impossible to reduce power tariff. They have forwarded a plan to AAP chief Kejriwal, outlining how it can be achieved.
A team is working tirelessly for last seven days under Shailendra Dubey, a technical advisor to Kejriwal and Secretary General of All India Engineer’s Federation.
“We have chalked out a methodology in collaboration with Arvind Kejriwal which would enable the AAP government to bring down power tariff in Delhi to Rs 4.65 paise per unit or Rs 3.95 paise per unit”, Dubey says.
“Contrary to the claims that reduction in power tariff would drain the state exchequer, the state of Delhi would in fact earn additional revenue by selling surplus power to other states at higher rates,” he said.
“To understand the nitty-gritty of the formula, we need to draw a comparison between UP and Delhi. Incidentally, along with Dubey we too adopted the standard yardstick to help Kejriwal fulfill his poll promise,” says Mohd Firoz, vice-president of UP Engineer’s Association.
Here are the statistics: Uttar Pradesh, with a population of more than 20 crore, has an average demand of 13,000 MW per month. Delhi with a much lower population has a demand ranging between 5,500 MW and 6,000 MW per month.
In UP, per month the state purchases 13,000 MW from hydro power projects at the rate of 53 paise per unit and at the rate of Rs 2.35 per unit from thermal power projects. In addition, the Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL) purchases power from National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) at the rate of Rs 3.20 per unit.
The shortfall of additional demand of 2,500 MW in UP is met by buying electricity from other sources at the rate of Rs 5.50 to Rs 6 per unit. Despite this the state gives electricity to consumers at the rate of Rs 3.95 paise per unit in the state.
In Delhi, to meet its demand of 5,500 to 6,000 MW per month, the government purchases electricity from Bhakhra hydro power project at the rate of 30 paise per unit and from thermal plants at Rs 2.19 paise per unit, and lastly from NTPC at the rate of Rs 2.35 paise per unit.
Also, Delhi receives additional quota of electricity from other states. So there is enough power to meet the existing demand and the state can even sell some to other states at higher rates to compensate the shortfall caused by power tariff reduction. This will add to the benefit Kejriwal believes Delhi government to earn extra following audit of the power distribution companies.
