If the blistering heat wasn’t enough, now power cuts can make the summer even more unbearable for several parts of India. Several states, including Delhi, Punjab, and Uttar Pradesh are facing a coal shortage which could result in power outages. In Delhi, an uninterrupted power supply for hospitals and metro operations could be hit. Railways have often been blamed for the delay in the transportation of coal. Lack of vehicles and rakes is also a big problem. In view of this, the Railways has planned to add one lakh more wagons to its fleet.
Several states in India are reeling from frequent power outages due to the shortage of coal in thermal power stations. The key states facing the issue of coal shortage are Delhi, Punjab, and Uttar Pradesh among others. The Delhi government on Thursday warned of a possible setback in providing an uninterrupted electricity supply to important establishments in the capital, including Metro trains and hospitals. Power Minister Satyendar Jain held an emergency meeting to assess the situation and wrote to the Centre requesting it to ensure adequate coal availability to power plants that supply electricity to the national capital.
A government statement reads, “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,” 25-30 percent of the electricity demand in Delhi is being met through these power stations, and they face a shortage of coal, Jain said. According to the daily coal report of the National Power Portal, Dadri-II, Unchahar, Kahalgaon, Farakka, and Jhajjar power plants face an acute shortage of coal. This, coupled with the sweltering summer, has triggered blackouts across many parts of the country as states struggle to manage the record demand for electricity.
Many parts of India have been facing prolonged blackouts due to the coal crisis, while some industries are cutting production due to a lack of fuel. Due to this crisis, the slowdown arising out of the epidemic can threaten the growth of the economy. Inflation may increase further in the coming times. In order to deal with this and for smooth movement of coal, the railways have canceled many passenger trains, so that the goods trains carrying coal can be run faster and it can be delivered to the designated stations in time.
Gaurav Krishna Bansal, executive director of Indian Railways, one of Asia’s largest networks, said that this measure of cancellation of passenger trains is temporary and passenger services will be restored as soon as the situation normalizes. He said that this step has been taken to reduce the time taken for transportation of coal to the power plants. Let us tell you that the railways have often been held responsible for the delay in the transportation of coal. Lack of vehicles and rakes is also a big problem. In view of this, the Railways has planned to add one lakh more wagons to its fleet. Apart from this, the Railways is also building a dedicated freight corridor for faster movement of goods.
