Trying his best to outsmart his Tamil Nadu counterpart J Jayalalithaa, chief minister N Kiran Kumar Reddy on Wednesday demanded that Andhra Pradesh should get priority in allocation of a good portion of the 300 MW unallocated power from the Koodankulam Nuclear Power Plant (KKNPP) in the neighbouring state.
The state is reeling under the impact of a severe power crisis, the worst in the recent history, Reddy told reporters here on Wednesday.
Asked whether it was proper for Jayalalithaa to seek the entire power generated at the 1,000 MW power for Tamil Nadu in the first unit of KKNPP, Reddy said, “Every state will ask for it but it is the Centre which makes the allocation. We are requesting it for a good portion of it.”
On the current power crisis, Reddy said monsoon failure, sudden decrease in gas supply and wet coal supplied from the Mahanandi fields had resulted in shortfall in power generation in the state. The lack of a power corridor compounded the problem.
“We are determined to purchase power at any cost but it is not available and even if it does, corridor has become a problem,” the chief minister said.
The state wanted the Centre to supply 500 MW from the central generation stations and another 700 MW from Nyveli. The chief minister said the electricity duty on captive power plants would be waived.
7-hour power for farmers: Kiran Kumar Reddy averred that farmers would get sevenhour power supply for agricultural needs. However, a sudden spurt in demand was tripping the equipment and disrupting the supply, he said.