Agriculture power demand up as rains keep away in Gujarat

The delay in arrival of monsoon has resulted in sharp rise in power demand from agricultural sector in the state, a senior government official said.

The average demand from the agriculture sector is around 35-40 million units (MU) per day during the monsoon season. However, demand has risen to 50 MU per day on account of delayed rains, as farmers are using more power to draw water for irrigation purposes.

According to DJ Pandian, principal secretary, energy & petrochemicals department, "Demand can further increase to 60 MU in next few days if rains don't arrive soon." 

Pandian said that in spite of sharp rise in power demand, state was not experiencing power shortage. "We are generating adequate power and coping with the demand," he added.

While it rained in parts of Gujarat, including south Gujarat and Saurashtra, monsoon is yet to set in properly. In fact, rains are yet to arrive in central and north Gujarat.

Lack of rains has severely impacted sowing operations. According to state government, sowing of various crops done so far in the state is only half of what is normally done in this period. However, government is hopeful that sowing would pick up with arrival of rains in the next few days.

Officials said that besides the farm sector, demand for power from industrial sector has also gone up   from an average 52 MU per day to 58 MU, said officials. "This is due to growth in manufacturing and industrial sector in the state," they added.