Riyaz Bhat
Srinagar, Nov 10: In Jammu and Kashmir, the Aggregate Technical and Commercial (AT&C) loss of Power Development Department is one of the highest in India—causing a gap between power purchase cost and revenue realisation.
Currently, the AT&C losses are of the order of 50 percent against the national average of 19.73 percent.
The official documents state, “The AT&C losses of J&K Power Development Department are one of the highest in the country.”
“The present AT&C losses are of the order of 50 percent against the national average of 19.73 percent. Due to these losses, the gap between power purchase cost and revenue realisation is huge,” it reads.
It further said that there was a high cost of power supply to the exchequer due to the scattered and remote location of Households.
The document states that in Jammu and Kashmir, a substantial quantum of electricity is lost as electrical efficiency (I^2R) loss leading to high cost of power supply.
“Due to the existence of long Low Tension (LT) lines carrying electricity to distant and scattered households over mountain tops, a substantial quantum of electricity is lost as I2R loss leading to high cost of power supply,” it reads.
It also states that the electricity demand was surging in the UT of J&K with a continual growth of around 8-10 percent year on year, attributable mainly to the rapid pace of urbanisation and addition of a large number of households through recent electrification schemes.
The document further reveals that the upsurge in the usage of electronic and electrical appliances and improvement in the standard of living was also adding to the electricity demand in Jammu and Kashmir.
