SRINAGAR: Kashmir faces a power deficit of nearly 200 MW, resulting in unscheduled and distress cuts. The Kashmir Power Distribution Corporation Limited (KPDCL) currently receives less than 1500 MW, far below the 1700 MW required to provide uninterrupted power supply.
Officials from the Power Development Department (PDD) said that the shortfall continues to challenge the region’s power distribution. “At least 1700 MW is essential to avoid unscheduled cuts and ensure power supply according to the load curtailment schedule,” an official said.
Currently, KPDCL receives less than 1500 MW of power. However, authorities assert that the distribution company is indeed receiving this amount.
“KPDCL has the capacity to distribute 2200 MW without issues. The bottleneck lies in the availability of power, not distribution,” the official explained.
On local power generation, the official noted that output has significantly declined, with Kashmir’s power plants producing only 50-60 MW. “Local generation has drastically reduced,” they added.
The power generation in Jammu and Kashmir from state-run plants has fallen by nearly 80 per cent. A PDD official confirmed that demand surged in mid-November, while the total generation from the UT pool remained between 200-260 MW.
Urban areas currently experience over six hours of daily power cuts, while rural regions face over eight hours of outages. Officials hinted at an impending announcement of a revised power curtailment schedule due to the ongoing dip in generation.
