India power regulators use electricity to gain votes

- Hyderabad, Andhra Pradesh is frantically buying electricity from other states to ensure uninterrupted power supply so as not to earn the wrath of voters in the summer months ahead of the upcoming elections.

The ruling Telugu Desam Party (TDP) does not want people to suffer because of frequent power cuts that are an annual phenomenon during summer. The Andhra Pradesh Transmission Corp (AP Transco), which is responsible for electricity supply, will spend Rs.15-20 million every day to buy electricity to meet the shortfall.

The state-owned organisation will end up spending Rs.2 billion in the next two months.

Fearing the adverse impact electricity shortage might have on its electoral prospects, the TDP has given the go-ahead to Transco to purchase 1,200 megawatts (MW) every day.

Of this, 600 MW (2.78 million units) are being purchased from the Power Trading Corporation, a central government undertaking which purchases electricity from other states.

Transco is buying 200 MW from National Vidyut Vyapar Nigam (NVVN), a trading subsidiary of National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC). It is also overdrawing 340 MW (2.73 MU) from central generating stations.

The electricity demand in the state has gone up to 146.12 MU per day due to the ongoing summer crop season and the onset of summer.

The gap between the demand and supply is 1.72 MU and it might go up to 5 MU in the coming days.

Electricity has always remained a sensitive issue in the state politics. Its importance has only gone up with the main opposition Congress party promising free electricity to farmers if voted to power.

The ruling party fears that electricity cuts to agriculture and domestic sectors might lead to public anger, especially at a time when the state would experience a scorching summer.

It was for this reason that the TDP had been pressing for elections in early March.

The elections to the assembly and the Lok Sabha are to be held in two phases April 20 and 26, when summer would be its peak, causing electricity and drinking water shortage.

Every year Transco imposes power cuts even on the domestic sector during the summer to meet the increased demand.

G. Sai Prasad, joint managing director of Transco, said all efforts were being made to maintain seven to nine hours of supply to the agriculture sector.

"We will not allow the rabi crop to be affected due to the shortage of power and to ensure this we may also impose power cuts on the industry," said Prasad.

Domestic sector will be the other priority for Transco.

"We will ensure uninterrupted supply from dusk to dawn even in rural areas," said P.M.K. Gandhi, director of Transco.

Hydel generation has come down by 60 percent due to low water levels in reservoirs.

The two officials denied that the decision was taken in view of the elections.

"We have nothing to do with the elections. Our job is to ensure proper supply and we are going for purchases to meet the increased demand," one of them said.