J A M M U   &   K A S H M I R

20-hour-power cut in valley
SRINAGAR, Jan 16 — The Kashmir valley has been plunged into darkness due to the 20-hourpower-cut a day since Friday last following a disruption of transmission lines from the northern grid.

J&K Govt flayed for "repressive" action
JAMMU, Jan 16 — Leaders of various political parties have asked the Jammu and Kashmir Government to stop using "repressive" measures against the striking state government employees and resume talks with them to reach a negotiated settlement.

20-hour-power cut in valley
From Ehsan Fazili
Tribune News Service

SRINAGAR, Jan 16 — The Kashmir valley has been plunged into darkness due to the 20-hourpower-cut a day since Friday last following a disruption of transmission lines from the northern grid.

Against a peak-hour demand of nearly 700 MWs a day, the availability of power from all the hydel resources in Kashmir is only of 150 MWs per day. The situation is likely to continue, it will take a month for the restoration of power supplies through the 220 KV Kishanpur-Pampore transmission line and the 132 KV Udhampur-Srinagar transmission line from the northern grid.

The disruption in transmission of power from the northern grid started on Friday when one of the 220 KV towers gave way near Qazigund after falling on the nearby 132 KV line, a spokesman for the Power Development Department (PDD) said here. He added that due to the fault, it was not possible to receive power from the northern grid. With the result most of the areas including Srinagar in the valley, were plunged into darkness on Friday last. Most of the areas did not receive power supply even for an hour during the past 48 hours.

An official spokesman quoting the PDD here stated that owing to the breakdown of the 220 KV Kishanpur-Pampore and 132 KV Udhampur-Srinagar transmission line, the power availability for the valley had reduced drastically to the peak of 150 MWs only, which was 550 MWs short of the evening demand. The spokesman said the restoration of 220 KV transmission lines would take 20 to 25 days, while 132 KV transmission line would be restored within two to three days. Till the restoration of these lines, power would be made available areawise for four to five hours daily.

Earlier the consumers in the valley used to have a daily power cut for at least 14 hours a day, and twice a week of four-hour-cut. Sources in the department said that the State Government owed over Rs 11 crore to the northern grid. The State Government had made a budgetary allocation of Rs 850 crore for power for the current financial year. More than half of which has already been consumed during the first six months of the current financial year. With the increase in power demand during the winter, there were additional debts on the State Government in the power sector.

With the latest schedule of power supply in force, hospital services in the city have been drastically affected. Power supply in the hospitals has also been reduced, while very few lines catering to the VVIPs and residential areas and only some of the hospitals have been made regular.

The State Government drew flak for increasing the power tariff during the past two years. It also announced amnesty to consumers for pending power bills during the past decade of militancy. The consumers did not pay power tariff and taxes prior to 1996-1997. This has put the State Government in debt of the northern grid.

The State Government is yet to start the gas turbine power station at Pampore, which used to cover up the gap in power generation in the winter. Sources said the State Government was reluctant in starting the gas turbine station due to the financial constraint.

The Department has also been awaiting the commissioning of the first unit of 35 MWs unit of the Upper Sindh Hydel Power Project, Kangan. Scheduled to be commissioned in 1990, the work on the project was stopped for several years. The work on the project was stopped for several years. The work on the 105-MWs power project of three units, was started in 1998 and its first unit of 35 MWs was expected to be commissioned by December last year. However, the unit has not been commissioned as yet.

J&K Govt flayed for "repressive" action

JAMMU, Jan 16 (PTI) — Leaders of various political parties have asked the Jammu and Kashmir Government to stop using "repressive" measures against the striking state government employees and resume talks with them to reach a negotiated settlement.

The leaders, who held a meeting here last evening to discuss the situation following the strike by the state government employees for fulfilment of their 17-point charter of demands, including disbursement of two DA instalments and the Fifth Pay Commission arrears, criticised the government for resorting to harsh methods against the employees.

The meeting was attended by the president of the state BSP, MLA Sheikh Abdul Rehman, Congress leader Ashok Sharma (MLA), Mr Dhan Raj Bagotra (JD-S), Mr Hari Chand Jalmeria (CPM), Mr Naresh Munshi (CPI), Choudhary Abdul Rouf (PDP), Mr Bharat Bhusan Kotwal (Panthers Party) Mr Subhash Singh Salathia (Lok Shakti) and Mr Shashi Kant (BJS).