Muzaffarpur/Gaya, April 20: Erratic power supply along with unequal distribution of available energy in different areas on a rotational basis has left residents of Muzaffarpur and Gaya in a lurch.
Tirhut Area Electricity Board (TAEB), Muzaffarpur, has tightened its belt to provide electricity to the township on rotational basis. The town has been experiencing an acute power crisis for the past fortnight.
TAEB general manager Mohammad Giyasuddin said the town needed at least 55MW of electricity and it is presently receiving 30MW to 35MW. The power situation worsens when the central load dispatch (CLD) slashes the quota of electricity from the central pool.
Residents here are up in arms against the power crisis and they expressed their anguish by protesting at Bhola Chowk last Saturday. “The people are in a mood to lodge a protest,” said Mohammad Murtuza, a retired agriculture scientist residing in Qurban Road in Chandwara.
Giyasuddin said the power supply was hindered when the CLD slashed allocation owing to non-availability of electricity to it from the central pool.
He added: “This is a natural phenomenon. We are helpless in increasing allocation.”
Giyasuddin said people in the vicinity created nuisance at TAEB on Saturday for the poor power situation.
The board has written letters to the Bihar State Electricity Board (BSEB) not to cut allocation to Muzaffarpur, whenever CLD slashed its allocation keeping in view of the hostile people.
The Tirhut board has also sought deployment of police forces inside and outside the office to tackle the unruly mob. Apprehending mob fury over the poor power supply, district magistrate Santosh Kumar Mall said he would monitor the power supply and hinted that electricity would be provided to the power sub-stations on a rotational pattern in a day.
Mall added: “Now, there would be complete transparency. Every sub-station area will get power on an average interval of two hours. The CLD has increased 15MW of electricity to Muzaffarpur in the wake of GM’s intervention to hike the allocation.”
In Gaya, all sections of the people in the district were affected, BSEB claimed improvement in the power situation as the allocation to Gaya had increased to an average of 25MW against the requirement of 50MW.
Till a few days ago, the district was receiving between 5MW and 10MW.
Peeved at the poor power supply, a social worker, Ajit Agarwal residing at Chanakyapuri locality of the township, has written to the chief minister, state energy minister, BSEB chairman, BSEB Magadh area board general manager and the Central Bihar Chamber of Commerce president demanding an improvement in the power situation.
Agarwal told The Telegraph in the blame game between the Union and the state government over the allocation of power eventually the eventual sufferers were the common men.
“If there is a shortage in the allocation of power by the Centre, the state government should arrange the required mega watts from the adjoining states till any permanent solution is arrived at,” he said.
