New Delhi: As the heatwave intensifies in the country, so has the squabbling between the Centre and the states over power outages, with the latter claiming they have inadequate coal supply for electricity generation. Â
Uttar Pradesh, Punjab, Maharashtra, Haryana, Tamil Nadu, and Andhra Pradesh are facing some of the longest power cuts in the country.Â
States claim that the Centre did not anticipate a sudden surge in power demand, which generally peaks towards the end of April but came earlier this year because of the heatwave sweeping the country. Â
Another factor that has contributed to long power cuts is that several states are shying away from buying expensive power, owing to demand-supply mismatch.
The global coal prices, as monitored by Markets Insider, were hovering around $326 per tonne on 22 April against $120 per tonne in January. For comparison, coal cost $50 a tonne in 2020, meaning that its price has gone up over six times in just over two years.Â
Last week, several states urged the Centre to increase the coal supplied to them. Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar claimed inadequate coal supply forced him to consider alternatives to bridge the supply shortfall of around 3,500-4,000 MW. Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to honour their Fuel Supply Agreement (FSA) and supply the promised 72,000 metric tonnes of coal a day to the Paradip and Visakhapatnam ports.
A third important reason why power outages have become a burning issue is the inadequate supply to industries. For context, Tamil Nadu and Maharashtra are among the most industralised states in the country.
—ANI