<p>Rural Karnataka will, however, bear the brunt as the existing six-hour three-phase power supply to irrigation pump sets in the rural areas has been reduced to three-hour supply. <br /><br />With per unit cost of electricity escalating, the government has also shifted the three-phase supply from peak time to non-peak hours for rural consumers, who pay lower tariff. However, single-phase power to rural areas will continue.<br /><br />“The three-phase power supplied between 6 am and 12 noon will be shifted to 1-6pm. Single phase power will be supplied from 6 pm to 6 am,” Energy Minister Shobha Karandlage told mediapersons here after a meeting with Energy Department officials.<br /><br />The minister denied Bangalore was subject to unofficial load-shedding even before the formal announcement. The power outages in the City were due to technical problems and not load-shedding, she claimed. <br /><br />Attributing the power crisis and proposed load-shedding to the disruption in coal arrivals due to the Telangana agitation in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, she said the Union Government must ensure uninterrupted power supply in the State by immediately providing more coal from Western Coalfields in Nagpur, Maharashtra and from Mahanadi Coalfields in Sambalpur, Odisha. The “rail roko agitation” in Telangana had affected coal supply. <br /><br />“The Railway ministry must provide us with an alternative railway line and ensure unabated coal supply to the thermal stations in the State,” she said.<br />The demand for power had also increased rapidly across the southern states, thereby affecting power supply to Karnataka. The Centre should also strengthen the southern grid.<br /><br />The State government proposed to procure power from non-conventional sources to partially meet the huge demand. “The State government is in discussion with co-generation units to enhance the procurement from the present 300 MW by another 200 MW. A meeting of co-gen power producers has also been called on Tuesday,” she said.<br /><br />The minister is also scheduled to meet industry bodies, including the Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry and Karnataka Small Scale Industries Association.<br /><br />Reiterating her request to the Union government to allocate more power to the State, she said the Simhadri and Ramagundam plants in Andhra Pradesh had stopped power generation, aggravating the crisis. <br />DH News Service</p>
<p>Rural Karnataka will, however, bear the brunt as the existing six-hour three-phase power supply to irrigation pump sets in the rural areas has been reduced to three-hour supply. <br /><br />With per unit cost of electricity escalating, the government has also shifted the three-phase supply from peak time to non-peak hours for rural consumers, who pay lower tariff. However, single-phase power to rural areas will continue.<br /><br />“The three-phase power supplied between 6 am and 12 noon will be shifted to 1-6pm. Single phase power will be supplied from 6 pm to 6 am,” Energy Minister Shobha Karandlage told mediapersons here after a meeting with Energy Department officials.<br /><br />The minister denied Bangalore was subject to unofficial load-shedding even before the formal announcement. The power outages in the City were due to technical problems and not load-shedding, she claimed. <br /><br />Attributing the power crisis and proposed load-shedding to the disruption in coal arrivals due to the Telangana agitation in neighbouring Andhra Pradesh, she said the Union Government must ensure uninterrupted power supply in the State by immediately providing more coal from Western Coalfields in Nagpur, Maharashtra and from Mahanadi Coalfields in Sambalpur, Odisha. The “rail roko agitation” in Telangana had affected coal supply. <br /><br />“The Railway ministry must provide us with an alternative railway line and ensure unabated coal supply to the thermal stations in the State,” she said.<br />The demand for power had also increased rapidly across the southern states, thereby affecting power supply to Karnataka. The Centre should also strengthen the southern grid.<br /><br />The State government proposed to procure power from non-conventional sources to partially meet the huge demand. “The State government is in discussion with co-generation units to enhance the procurement from the present 300 MW by another 200 MW. A meeting of co-gen power producers has also been called on Tuesday,” she said.<br /><br />The minister is also scheduled to meet industry bodies, including the Federation of Karnataka Chambers of Commerce and Industry and Karnataka Small Scale Industries Association.<br /><br />Reiterating her request to the Union government to allocate more power to the State, she said the Simhadri and Ramagundam plants in Andhra Pradesh had stopped power generation, aggravating the crisis. <br />DH News Service</p>
