Delhi CM says power cuts a matter of few days

The power shortages show the reality of a city which is being showcased as a grand city for the 2010 Commonwealth Games. When will Delhi's power woes end? Sheila Dikshit answers all questions on CNN-IBN.

CNN-IBN: The power shortages show the reality of a city which is being showcased as a grand city for the 2010 Commonwealth Games. The images of protests seem to jar.

Sheila Dikshit: This has been an unusual and unanticipated heat wave and shortage of rain has caused this. It has not happened in the past several years. This is a problem which has risen in the past five to six days and I hope that within the next few days, we will be able to overcome it.

CNN-IBN: We are certainly expecting the rains by July 1, but you have put the distribution companies in Delhi on notice and have told them to show some performance in the next few days, but the discoms are saying that the fault lies with your government, that you haven't planned for additional capacity and that Delhi will continue to have this shortfall.

Sheila Dikshit: No, that is a conclusion you have come to. We have already given 4,200 plus MW of power today (Monday), the hignest Delhi has ever consumed. There have been arrangements - some of them broke down because power was not available. BSES was not able to anticipate the situation, their agreement fell through because there was not enough power generation. It's a complicated situation but to call it something which is hopeless or to say that nothing is ever going to happen is not right. I'm afraid I don't agree with you at all. We are doing our best, we are working round the clock and we will see to it that this situation is overcome in the next few days.

CNN-IBN: No one doubts that your government is trying to do something when a crisis is before us, but what about in the last 10 years? Where has been the capacity enhancement? Delhi is a city growing faster than any other city in the country and yet you haven't added any capacity in terms of power enhancement.

Sheila Dikshit: Yes we have. You know that you cannot have power stations of any other kind other than gas-based in Delhi and they are going to come up with about 6,000 MW in the next two years. But we have added about 300-odd MW in the last five to six years. We are meeting a demand of about 3,900 MW - we are short by about 100-odd MW because the demand has gone up so much. This is something that we did not anticipate and I would please beg you to have a little patience.

CNN-IBN: Would you concede then that this is the problem? That the country has not anticipated the kind of capacity it would need in the years ahead, that we never really planned for 2009?

Sheila Dikshit: I think the Government of India has already announced that it is going to add another 50,000 MW but if you have unanticipated heat like you have had in the past 10 days, which we have never had in Delhi, I think those are situations which require war-footing attendance being given to it.

CNN-IBN: The big question is that in Mumbai, private companies seem to have got their act together, built capacity, while in Delhi, the Delhi Electricity Regulation Commission which was set up...

Sheila Dikshit: Number one, Mumbai's consumption of power is just 2,000 MW and also it has had rains.

CNN-IBN: But would you concede that in Delhi the regulator has failed to conduct and oversee these private discoms, that you don't have a proper regulatory mechanism?

Sheila Dikshit: Yes I agree with you there. One of the private discoms, NDPL is doing fine. Except for the normal power outages at time, it is able to handle the situation. But BSES is not and that is why we have had had meetings. Even on Monday we had one. We are overseeing it and I pray to God and I do hope that we will overcome this in the next two or three days.

CNN-IBN: The power cuts have reached their peak now, but even so there is a chronic shortage. Many are saying that the Northern Grid itself which does not have enough and it runs at a negative 500 MW on a regular basis. Where do you really think Delhi needs to get power from or is the answer only really going to be that the Capital citizen has to learn to use less electricity?

Sheila Dikshit: You are absolutely right that there is a shortage in the Northern Grid. However, Delhi is putting up gas-based plants. We have an agreement with Haryana for a plant and that would all result in about 6,000 MW coming to Delhi in the next two years. Now you cannot build a power plant in a jiffy. The work is going on, the plants will be built but power will be available only after two or three years.

CNN-IBN: Is it fair that we have a law which forces discoms to provide uninterrupted, assured power to VVIP areas while the rest of the city suffers. I mean doesn't such a situation only increase public hostility to those in power? That's part of the problem. It's about perception and the perception here is that the aam aadmi has to live with power cuts whereas the khaas aadmis can get away with it.

Sheila Dikshit: Please remember that the private discoms have nothing whatsoever to do with the NDMC areas where all the VIPs live. The discoms also have nothing to do with the cantonement area as well. These discoms are in south, north, east and west Delhi. BSES has not lived up to our and people's expectations.

CNN-IBN: Would you say that the Tata's did a better job under the Maharashtra government then?

Sheila Dikshit: Our problems are not comparable. Mumbai does not have consumption as we do. We have a burgeoning population. Apart from that Mumbai also had power cuts before the rains came on. These are unusual situations, please bear with us. We can't help the weather. Today there has been a drizzle which I hope will turn into monsoon and I hope we will be back to normal like we have been for the past five years.

CNN-IBN: The power cuts still affect only the aam aadmi not the politicians in Lutyen's Delhi.

Sheila Dikshit: We have been asked by the Power Secretary to cut down on power consumption. If you are using two air conditioners, use one. The government is feeling very guilty and is trying not to use more power. The aam aadmi is more important than all of us put together.

CNN-IBN: Do you really believe your ministers will do that?

Sheila Dikshit: Yes I would like to believe that just like I would like to believe that people like you also cut down on power.

CNN-IBN: Let's hope that that drizzle turns into a heavy downpour and alleviates the woes over the next few days.

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