Uninterrupted power supply ensured to all consumers in Tamil Nadu, says Thangam Thennarasu

CHENNAI: Faced with sporadic public protests due to power outage in the state, state electricity minister Thangam Thennarasu on Tuesday claimed that uninterrupted power supply was being provided to all consumers in the state due to the various efforts taken to improve the power infrastructure in the last three years.

Pointing out that about 8,905 transformers in the state, mostly in Trichy, Navalur and Villupuram zones were identified to be suffering low voltage problem, Thennarasu, in a statement issued in this regard, said that under the integrated development project undertaken since August 2021, energy infrastructure to the tune of Rs 743.86 crore has been upgraded and made operational.

An additional 652 MVA capacity has been augmented and about 5,705 transformers with high load were identified and repaired in the state.

To address the problem of low voltage, about 3,200 new transformers have been installed and power loss has been considerably reduced by scaling down the low tension transmission lines.

Claiming that electricity distribution with consistent voltage has been ensured for low end users among others, the minister said that the efforts made by the state government to scale up the energy infrastructure in the last three years have resulted in uninterrupted power supply to all consumers in the state.

Arguing that three phase power supply for agriculture was provided for 12 hours in delta districts and nine hours in the rest of the state in the past, Thennarasu said that it has been increased to 12 – 16 hours throughout the state now, which has increased agriculture productivity.

Similarly, about 1.5 lakh new electricity connections were provided to farmers in the last two years and provision of new connections this year was also underway, the minister pointed out.

Admitting that there was some disruption in the High Tension lines in delta districts owing to the overall spike in energy demand in the state, particularly the delta districts, Thennarasu said that efforts were being made on a war footing to repair the disruptions and ensure maximum three phase power supply for agriculture in delta districts.