KOPPAL: Uncertainty of the Electricity Supply Companies (ESCOMS) in the state with respect to announcement of schedule of power supply and disruptions has hit the common people hard.
Though lifestyle of people nowadays is dependent on electricity, the ESCOMs are in a Catch 22 situation as it is the government which has to take a call on the official announcement of power supply and disruption hours, sources in the Gulbarga Electricity Supply Company (GESCOM) told Express.
Though availability of power for supply varies every day, the government could take stock of the situation and give prior information to people, a senior GESCOM official said.
For instance, Koppal district on an average requires about 120 megawatt power and faces shortage of about 40 megawatt every day. About 52 per cent of the 120 megawatt is required for irrigation while industries in the district need about 28 per cent. The rest is meant for domestic and commercial purposes, sources said.
GESCOM executive engineer M S Pattar said at present three-phase power supply is provided in the district at two different times. It is being provided between 6 am and 11 am in some parts and between 11 am and 6 pm in the remaining parts. During the night, single phase power supply is provided, he said. Yet, he declined to specify in which parts power is supplied in phase I and II.
Though he conceded that it caused uncertainty among common people, he maintained that the government has to take a decision in this regard.