Vikram Gaur
Day in and day out the public is being put to gravest inconvenience in these hot summer days due to power breakdowns and power cuts. The breakdown of power during these hot raining days due to unfair weather is very common. Slight wind or rain, power goes off. This is, obviously, because the power distribution network is in shambles. The conductor on poles at some places is like swings without appropriate space in-between, bare conductors almost touching each other, bent poles are not in alignment, pole fixtures are loose, stays to hold the structures are loose or nonexistent. At several places, even in city area, creepers are seen climbing on to the pole structures (HT or LT). The bare conductor passes through thick cluster of trees without any passage for the conductor (no branch cutting). The electric poles carry more of unauthorized TV cables, telephone wires and several other wires than the actual electric conductors. At many places the conductor is under-sized; getting over loaded at peak load hours and thus causing heavy T&D losses. Overloaded Sub-stations both 33/11 kv and 1100/440 volts Transformers with almost no maintenance until they get burnt/damaged. The switchgear installed is outdated and ill-maintained. The inside of a 33/11kv control room gives an abandoned look except for a small TV set for recreation of staff (untrained)on duty and is only 1/4rth of the required staff strength. Although, distribution network has grown and expanded several times since early nineties there has been no increase in required manpower.
Over-worked Staff.
Let us take up the case of the three main Maintenance Divisions of Jammu district. Namely, EM&RE City Division-1, EM&RE City Divisipn-2 and EM&RE City Divisipn-3.
City Divion-1 has 4- Sub-Divisions and has 43,602 No. registered consumers in and around old Jammu city. Their Revenue Target of 64.79 crores for 2010-11 has been increased to 101.80 for 2011-12.
City Division-2, the largest Div. has 4-Sub-Divisions with 98’505 registered Consumers across Tawi Bridge within the limits of Jammu dist. The Revenue target of 156.00-crores for the year 2010-11 has been increased to 233.00crores for 2011-12.
City Division-3 with its jurisdiction starting from west of B.C. Road upto the western border with Pakistan has 4-SubDivisions and 94,000- registered consumers with them. Their Revenue Target of 70.00 crores for 2010-11 has been stepped upto 152.00 crores for 2011-12.
It may not be out of place to mention here that actual number of connections including illegal connections must be much more than the registered connections.
It may be mentioned here that for efficient, smooth and effective working ‘Standard National Norms’ for every Division and Sub-division in terms of maximum number installations, under their control, is fixed at 40,000 and 5,000 respectively. As soon as the number of consumers under their control exceeds the maximum number of consumers, a new division or Sub-Div. is created. But in the case of above mentioned three Divisions/Sub-Din their number of Reregistered Connections is more than 2 to 4-times as compared to the National Norms. The strength of the working staff in these divisions is much less than the required strength.
For the last over two decades there has been no recruitment of staff at the lower level of line-man, line supervisor, meter-reader, Inspector, revenue clerk, ledger clerk, meter inspector etc. For the ever expanding distribution network and fast increasing power demand there is hardly any policy of creation of new posts to match with the expansion of system network. In fact there is no prescribed qualification technical or otherwise for any of these technical posts which are so essential to maintain the most technical system (spread over in every nook and corner of the state) out of which the state has to recover hundreds of crores of rupees as revenue by selling power to its users. To the best of authors knowledge, within the last more than two decades the strength of working line staff has considerably decreased on account of retirement/death of many of trained workers. In fact absolutely raw hands are unofficially engaged who get trained while working with the trained staff. The additional requirement of staff is met by engaging least educated/ untrained people on PDL basis (that too for obliging people who matter). An idea about the paucity of the trained staff can be had from the fact that an area as big as Gandhi Nagar or Trikuta Nagar does not have more than 2-3 trained and regular line-men. Rest of the working staff is privately managed by regular working staff that is ‘on call’ round the clock for maintaining power supply.
The technically qualified and trained supervisory staff of AE, JEE and others in these divisions is extremely short of the required strength resulting in overloading and over stretching of their working hours. This obviously affects the efficiency and effectiveness of their working. These, more or less, are the prevailing conditions in the entire PDD.
Under Chief Engineer, EM&RE, Jammu there are as many as 12-EM&RE Divisions (excluding Sub-transmission Divs). These divisions have a target of recovering Rs 898.50 crores as revenue during the year 2011-12. Of this, three divisions of Jammu district (mentioned above) shall contribute Rs 486.80 crores more about 60% of the total target. The remaining 9-divisions will contribute Rs 401.70 crores.
These 9-divisions may be within the ‘Standard National Norms’ as for as the number of registered consumers are concerned but the 3- Jammu City divisions that share over 2,34,000 registered consumers need to be immediately increased to at least 6-divisions to match with the Standard National Norms. This will not only lessen the burden of overwork on the working staff, it will increase working efficiency resulting in better supervision over illegal use of electric power, better maintenance of system network, better service to the consumers and thus increase revenue realization considerably. The expenditure incurred by Government in raising additional 3-divisions will certainly be much less than the increase in revenue realized. In addition the sub-divisions in each of the divisions should not have more than 5,000 registered consumers to handle for better working and maximum revenue from the sale of electric power.
Presently the PDD is losing more than 2,000-crores annually with their T&D losses exceeding 70 percent and above stated short comings add to the mismanagement of this most vital department of the state.
It is therefore, imperative that the Chief Minister, who is in charge of the ministry, should first lay more emphasis on reducing the 70% losses that we are suffering instead of talking about more and more power generation to make the state self-sufficient in power needs. Reduction in losses from 70% to around 20-22% will by itself will make the state surplus in power as for as power requirement is concerned. But it does not mean we should not go for exploiting the power potential available in the state but that should be for the purpose increasing states resources.
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