Industries write to govt as poor power infra affects business

As the temperature rises and the demand for electricity gradually increases, the poor state of existing power infrastructure and lack of regular maintenance have left industries in Manesar struggling with unscheduled power outages and voltage fluctuations. The deteriorating infrastructure is impacting the production and operations of several factories. Now, industries have written to the state power minister, Ranjeet Chautala, and demanded immediate intervention. Industries have highlighted that despite an increase in the number of MSMEs annually, the existing power infrastructure falls significantly short of meeting the requirement for round-the-clock power supply. “While the government says that Haryana is in a power surplus, industries are not receiving a seamless power supply. This is mainly due to the outdated infrastructure and inefficient maintenance by the ground staff of the discom. There’s a shortage of linemen and because of that, there’s no maintenance. We have previously raised this issue. We have once again written to the government to intervene in the matter as the situation is crippling the industries and their production efficiencies,” said JN Mangle, President, Gurgaon Industrial Association (GIA). Furthermore, industries have expressed disappointment that despite repeated requests to construct a 220kV substation in Sector 8, the department has caused undue delays. Thus, the existing infrastructure is overstretched and would fail during peak summers. The construction of a 220kV substation in Manesar’s Sector 8 has been a long-pending demand of the industries. The government has also felt the need to improve the power distribution infrastructure and promised to act on it promptly. However, to this date, the project is marred by delays. This substation can significantly address the issue of overloading and reduce the instances of unscheduled outages. We demand that it should be completed during the summer months,” said Sumit Rao, general secretary, GIA. Also read: Industrial and Logistics sector to grow 26% YOY in FY23 TVS ILP aims to raise $100 million via warehouse InvIT