Even as the power scenario in Uttar Pradesh seems to be getting bleaker by every passing day, the cry for revision of the Gadgil formula of power allocation seems to be getting shriller.
With the Centre yet to reply to the chief minister Mayawati?s request for allocating more power to the state, the government is now contemplating to write another letter to impress upon the Centre the urgent need for increasing the ratio of unallocated power due to the state.
In fact, what is helping the state government to press for its demand is the letter that Vijoy Kumar, the outgoing chairman of Uttar Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission wrote to the Central Electricity Regulatory Commission on the last day of his tenure on October 21 this year.
Stating that allocations on account of central sector quota, based on the Gadgil Formula had not been fully implemented, as envisaged in the Electricity Act 2003, Kumar wrote, ?As head of the regulators in the largest state of the country, I feel that the consumers of Uttar Pradesh as well as the licensees have to face the brunt due to scarcity of power in the state and the consequent drainage on the financial resources due to out of turn drawal of power, consequently paying high UI charges.?
Meanwhile, the Uttar Pradesh Rajya Vidyut Upbhokta Parishad, a consumers? body, too has written a letter to the Prime Minister stating that injustice is being meted out to the people of Uttar Pradesh. Stressing upon the urgent need to change the Gadgil Formula, the president of the Upbhokta Parishadm Awdhesh Kumar Singh has written to the prime minister that the formula is no longer logical as the number of power consumers and the demand for power, along with the populations of the nine states of the northern region have undergone a sea change since the formula was launched more than 25 years ago.
Pointing out that 1399-mw unallocated power is due to the northern region, Verma states that as per the 2001 census, the total population of the region stood at 30.74 crore, out of which Uttar Pradesh?s population was the highest at 16.61 crore, approximately about 54% of the total population of the northern region.
However, despite this, the state?s share out of the unallocated power is a paltry 23% at 328-340 mw, while other states like Delhi, Haryana, Rajasthan and Chandigarh, which have lower population, have been allocated more power. ?In fact, many of these states are buying the unallocated power due to them from the centre at Rs 2.30 per unit and selling it off in the market at a premium of around Rs 10,? alleged Verma, stating that the Centre?s short-sightedness is helping promote black-marketing in the power sector.
New Delhi, with its 4.5% population, gets almost 10% power from the Centre, while Haryana with less than 7% population gets 19% and Rajasthan, with 5.65% population gets 18.17% of the unallocated power.