People in the State are still reeling under continued power cuts despite Umiam reservoir now having adequate water for uninterrupted power generation.
Following continuous rain in the last few days, the water level of the Umiam reservoir has gone up to 3205.75 feet as of today. The maximum level of the dam is 3220 feet.
The Umiam Hydro Electric Power Station Stage-1 is a major power project run by the Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MeECL).
The authorities of MeECL have today announced that the water may be released anytime if there is a further rise in the water level in the Umiam reservoir above the ‘safe level’.
Load shedding has been resorted to by MeECL for the past two months for eight to ten hours every day.
Many people who run business establishments that depend on electricity have complained that their businesses have been adversely affected due to the ongoing load shedding. Similarly, many people said that load shedding at night has caused insecurity due to an increase of theft and burglary cases.
Sources in the MeECL stated that Meghalaya borrowed around 400 million units of electricity from National Thermal Power Corporation (NTPC) since June and the State is returning the same to NTPC from the power generated from Umiam dam.
Yesterday, a delegation of the Voice of the People Party (VPP) led by party president Ardent M. Basaiawmoit met Chief Minister Conrad Sangma and appraised him of the difficulties faced by the people including students due to load shedding.
Recently, Power Minister Abu Taher Mondal said that the MeECL would reduce the load shedding duration in a phased manner the moment the State has power surplus.
The problem caused by load shedding has also been taken note by the Meghalaya High Court which recently directed the State government to file a comprehensive report indicating the measures to reduce the shortfall of power in the State.
The court was also miffed by the claim of the State government that the power shortfall in the State is more than 50 to 60 per cent of the demand.
The High Court had also asked the State government to indicate the measures taken to obtain additional power from the national grid and other sources that are available to reduce the shortfall.
