MP Power Cuts: Electricity consumers will now get relief from longer and more frequent power cuts. The Madhya Pradesh Electricity Regulatory Commission has issued orders specifying a maximum of 5 cuts or 5 hours of cuts per month in divisional headquarters and industrial areas. For district headquarters, this will be a maximum of 25 cuts or 15 hours per month. The order, issued by technical member Prashant Chaturvedi and acting chairman Gopal Shrivastava, also provides the formula for the System Average Frequency and Duration Index. Companies will use this to calculate the cuts.
However, under the Electricity Right of Consumer Rules 2020, there is a limit of 90 cuts or 60 hours of cuts in a year. Significantly, the order does not specify what action will be taken against power companies for violating the order.
The number and duration of power cuts will be measured using the formulas for the System Average Interaction Frequency Index and the System Average Interaction Duration Index. This works on a per-consumer basis. The System Average Interaction Frequency Index measures the number of power cuts per consumer annually. The System Average Interaction Duration Index measures the total duration of cuts per consumer annually. For example, if there are 100,000 consumers and two million cuts, it will be considered two cuts per consumer. That is, the cuts will be determined on a per-consumer basis. The hours of cuts will be assessed similarly.
Power cuts are nothing new in Madhya Pradesh. In Bhopal alone, on 22 August, the company carried out a power cut from the Neelbad sub-station from 11 am to 3 pm, leaving 36 neighbourhoods and colonies in darkness. On 22 July, a cut was imposed from 10 am to 4 pm in 69 areas including Kolar and Misrod. Now, following the Regulatory Commission's order, there will be relief from such situations.
