Power Play
Looks like the government of Maharashtra finally woke up to the fact that free power is an idea that cannot be sustained. Unfortunately, it took some mob rule to show them that the ordinary, middle class people of that state were fed up with the apathy shown by the state government. In most cases, the middle class in India are a very non-demanding lot - to get them riled up really takes something big.
There were sporadic attacks on the MSEB offices in the last two weeks, in Kolhapur, Nagpur and (sadly)Pune to mention a few places. In all cases, property was destroyed and the offices nearly gutted. This sent the government into a tizzy and they took a break from pointing fingers at each other and decided to placate the masses. Vox populi vox di. I suppose that the displeasure expressed by the Central Government over the free power isssue also tipped the scales in the matter.
So finally, a decision has been taken to shut down the free power and charge farmers at subsidized rates. As far as I’ve read the rate is Rs.1.70 per unit which the government is planning to subsidize to Re.0.50-0.70 per unit. They are also encouraging farmers to install meters so that billing becomes simpler. Though the order has gone through, it will be effective only from the 1st of June. The state has already lost over Rs.1700 crore over “free” power - how much more will it cost us now?
The MSEB is also trying to reduce the transmission losses that it incurs. Presently, it is at 39% - yup that’s the power loss in transport. This coupled with the power theft done by certain companies that lie on the outskirts of MSEBs jusrisdiction burns a big hole in the revenue collection.
In more good news on the power front, the court has ordered that all areas that are supplied by the MSEB to face load shedding. Therefore New Mumbai and Thana will also come under the load shedding plan. Mumbai (Bombay) is not supplied power by MSEB and will continue to have 24 hour power. MSEB announced that the load shedding time will come down from 4 hours to 3 hours a day for 5 days in a week. Unfortunately, the drones in the department seem to have missed this information and have been randomly cutting power over all areas for the last few days - not following the schedule that has been set up. This is way more irritating than a 4 hour power cut that is fixed. I hope they get back on track soon.
In other reading, India has come out with a sub-$200 computer (dubbed a simputer) [www.slashdot.org] which runs Linux and uses a memory stick to provide storage. Photos can be found here [www.news.com]. From what I read, it seems closer to a Palm PC than a complete computer. Let’s see what this does for the computer penetration in India which is currently at a measly 13%.
This is going to be a slow post month. The exams for my final semester in undergrad education are drawing close. Want to get it over and done with now.
That’s all from me. Power to the people!
