Speak up Delhi: Residents to get compensated for unscheduled power outages in city

Residents in the national capital have a reason to cheer, as they will now be compensated by power distributors in case of unscheduled power cuts. While most appreciate the policy, consumers are also sceptical about receiving the benefits.

During the peak summer months, the city witnesses massive power outages which take a toll on consumers.

Residents of Minto Road rued that there was a huge power cut at night on this Friday.

"The unscheduled power cut started at around 11 pm and it was restored only around 1 am. This is the time for people to sleep. We don't know if we will be compensated for this. It will have to be seen in the bill," said Rajat Sharma, a resident.

The pro-consumer policy was proposed by the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) government earlier this week, which received a nod from Lieutenant Governor Anil Baijal on Thursday. The policy gains importance as the AAP came to power on the poll plank of providing adequate power and water for subsidised rates.

B S Vohra, president of East Delhi Joint Federation of RWAs welcomed the move.

"I believe we can bid adieu to unscheduled power cuts in Delhi, as discoms will not, in any case, prefer to pay Rs 50/100 per hour on outages lasting more than an hour to residents. We appreciate the government for this great decision favouring people at large, who suffer during every summer at the hands of power distributors," said Vohra.

The power demand during this summer is expected to reach a maximum of 7,000 megawatts (MW). The government had announced an action plan last month to deal with the unusually high power demand.

Last year, the paramount power demand had crossed the 6,000 MW, reaching 6,526 MW in June, the highest for the year.

The new policy proposes that after the permissible time limit is over, the respective compensation amount shall be credited to the CA number automatically without any manual intervention and a message to this effect shall also be sent to a consumer.

The adjustment of the penalty amount shall be made in the consumer's monthly electricity bill.

In case, a group of consumers is affected by the unscheduled power cut, the discoms shall identify all such affected consumers from their own records and the compensation shall be credited to each of these consumersd by the unscheduled power cut, the discoms shall identify all such affected consumers from their own records and the compensation shall be credited to each of these consumers.

NEW POLICY

• The new policy proposes that after the permissible time limit is over, the respective compensation amount shall be credited to the CA number automatically without any manual intervention and a message to this effect shall also be sent to a consumer.

VOICES

It is a great move by the AAP government, which promised power and water on subsidised rates in its poll manifesto. However, the implementation of the policy will remain key to consumer satisfaction.
—Ishita Gupta

The step is welcome. The government has to make sure that the amount is compensated in the monthly bills. People of Delhi have been harassed by long and unbearable power cuts every summer. We hope to see the actual change in our bills next time.
—Jatin Arora

Only yesterday there was a long power outage in Hudson Lane area where a lot of students live in PGs. It is difficult for us to study. The cut is mostly during the morning or at night. I hope this policy reduces the number of outages faced during peak summer.
—Sivaranjini R

I hope it will be a better summer if this policy comes into place. It's on lines of poll promises made by the AAP government. Power cuts in the summer become unbearable during the night. However, it is a consumer-friendly initiative.
—Harshit Chawla

I just pray this policy brings down the number of power cuts during May and June when the summer vacations are on. This is a welcome move if it motivates power distributors to reduce the number of unscheduled power cuts.
—Priyanshu Agarwal

I appreciate the Kejriwal government's move to pay consumers for unscheduled power cuts. It is in favour of the big population of Delhi, which suffers from long outages every summer.
—Deepa Harjai

I think bringing in a policy for such an issue that affects almost all people of Delhi is a great move in itself. I just hope power distributors let the scheme go well. Eventually, if it helps in cutting down the number of power cuts, it will be a big achievement for the government as well as the consumers.
—Yatharth Sharma

Summers are tough with both power and water cuts. The policy sounds good if the compensation does reflect in the monthly bill cycle. I think it will help a large number of consumers across the metropolis.
—Rashi Arora

PANEL:

Height of demand

7,000 Megawatts power demand is expected this summer

6,000 Megawatts power was consumed last year, reaching 6,526 MW in June