Bite the bullet

Power corrupts, absolute power corrupts absolutely. Surely you heard that one before. Andhra Pradesh is caught somewhere in the middle of all that. Options before YSR are limited, as he struggles to contain the huge power surge, and a contrived farmers agitation, backed by his political opponents.

On one hand, YSR has to be seen adhering to his pledge of providing seven hours of dedicated power supply. On the other, he has to be realistic about the actual availability of power. With immense pressure being mounted on the generating stations, problems are beginning to show up. Boiler leakages and tripping are becoming common. When you push things beyond their capacity, they tend to break down. It happens both to man and machine.

So what options does YSR have? For one he has to buy power from any source. He has now agreed to run the idle gas-based power plants of the independent power producers on naptha. It is an expensive option, but with his back to the wall, YSR does not have much of a choice. So buy, at any cost. But where does the money come from? To save money, the government will have to trim down both plan and non-plan expenditures across departments.

Next go on a power saving drive. The government has decided to start charity from home, and has decided to cut down on the use of air conditioners and usage of lifts. Good move, but it must go beyond rhetoric. What about residences of ministers and bureaucrats who cannot sleep without ACs? Transco estimates that the saving will be to the tune of 10 million units, which is equivalent of setting a 400 MW power plant. Hoardings and signages don't need power after ten, and can be switched off.
But for heavens sake don't switch off the street lights, as someone from the electricity department has suggested. That will lead to more accidents and defeat the entire purpose of the exercise.

Next, go on an organized load shedding programme. If there is a power cut, then tell the people about it. Tell them when the power cuts are scheduled, so that consumers can make alternative arrangements. Don't shut down power only in the suburbs, start shutting down power in Banjara Hills, Jubilee, Hills, Begumpet and Punjagutta – CPDCL will save a lot more power than it would save from cutting down power in AS Rao Nagar or Medchal. The move to shift the load shedding from Transco to the distribution companies is a step in the right direction.

Next, bite the bullet. Provide subsidy to farmers based on their consumption. That calls for meters to be installed for every pump in the state. If the farmer consumes less than 100 units a month, then waive his entire bill. If he consumes more then make a graded subsidy. Let the rich farmers who own hundreds of acres pay at the minimum 50% of their metered amount. Historically, it has been shown to be true that farmers are willing to pay if they get quality, committed power. It is the politicians who have spoilt the farming community with freebies.

If a poor factory worker in Hyderabad has to pay 4 rupees for a unit of power, why should a rich Honda City driving farmer not pay the thousands of rupees worth of power that he consumes? This way subsidy can be targeted directly at the farming community instead of being just thrown into the coffers of the distribution companies.

Next, scale up the capacity. The state needs to make huge investments in setting up new power plants. The 210 MW Rayalaseema power plant at Muddanur which will be synchronized with the grid in the second week of January is a small step in that direction. With one more unit expected to join the state grid in March, the state will have at least five million additional units in its kitty. February to April will be very crucial to the power scenario in the state, with demand from both domestic and farm segment expected to touch an all time high.

Next, get cracking on the gas front. The state MPs need to forge a common front and demand with the centre that ONGC must be made to live up to its promise. ONGC needs to get its house in order and provide required amount of gas to the units that are dependent on them. Push the Gujarat Gas Corporation and Reliance Energy to pre-pone their gas delivery schedules from the KG basin. Sign up agreements with both these entities now, so that the gas is first supplied to units within our state before being routed to others.

Looking at the future, get a nuclear power plant. Coal is not going to last beyond the next 50 to 60 years, and water is too risky in a state that is prone to erratic monsoon. If our state has to tackle the power shortage, then nuclear energy is the only long-term solution.

Till then, keep the candles ready. The lights might go off as you read this.