Energize power system

 It has been over three decades that the Department of Power Nagaland(DoPN) has been lamenting about power loss but the very fact that it is still going on raises pertinent questions about the ability or inability of the department to check the perennial loss. Recently, the DoPN has deployed its special revenue team to conduct a joint operation with police to nab defaulting consumers for non payment of Electricity bill, theft of power through hooking, tampering of Energy meters and pilferage of Energy meters. There may have earlier been such teams deployed to conduct ‘Operation Revenue Loss.’ If so, then it is not understood why the DoPN is giving publicity this time, for what can be described as normal official routine? Be that as it may, the loss is a big challenge to the capability of the planners in the DoPN as they need to find out ways and means on how to plug the loss and increase revenue collection. According to estimates, the DoPN is losing around 30% of power due to two factors- technical loss and commercial loss. Nagaland buys electricity worth around Rs.400 Crores annually which is re-soled to the consumers by the power department. However, the DoPN has been able to collect only around Rs.162 crores (As per 2019-2020). The revenue loss if translated into MW comes to around 30MW to 40 MW annually. Such a massive loss of revenue as well as power is a serious matter and it is strange that the government hasn’t decided to accord it utmost importance. Two major power projects are unable to supply the state’s growing power needs. While the Doyang Hydro Power Project generates 75 MW at peak, Nagaland can get only 12% as free and have to purchase the balance through NEEPCO. The other project, Likimro has a capacity to generate 24MW but it can only generate 50% of the installed capacity due to technical reasons. According to estimates, the demand for power by 2021 is going to total around 450 MW, an increase of around 100 MW from the previous years. Among districts, Dimapur has a huge power demand that is needed to power the economy but instead, fluctuations and long periods of power cuts have caused serious problems. At a time when the state is supposed to have achieved remarkable results going by the tall claims of the past decades, Dimapur, the so-called industrial and trade capital of the state remains without power for long hours. Uninterrupted power, the promise of the past decades, seems to be more distant by the year. The department has faulted the continuing problem to shortage of power by thirty to forty percent over around 40-50 MW requirement at peak hours. It seems that despite having bifurcated the department into two wings – (a)Directorate of Transmission & Generation and (b) Directorate of Distribution & Revenue- the system shift hasn’t worked wonders. Even the Association of Power Engineers of Nagaland(APEN) which has been ringing alarm bells during the past decade, has little answer on how to bring out positive and desired results. There may even be some toying with the idea of outsourcing crucial aspects of distribution and revenue. However, this may merely be another exercise in rebranding or changing name plate but these will end up as putting new wine in old bottles. The situation therefore, calls for setting up an independent and high level technical committee comprising of senior administrative officials and engineers including experts from private power companies to unearth or reveal the truth.