| POWER |
14.1.0.
|
Power
is the basic infrastructural requirement for the growth of industries
as well as over-all economy of the State. However, despite Assam possessing
immense potential of power ranging from hydel to natural gas including
oil and coal resources, the progress of this sector in the State has
not taken place on a scale commensurate with the possibilities. As
a result, there exists a big gap between availability and demand for
power in the State. |
14.1.1.
|
The
Assam State Electricity Board (ASEB), which was constituted in 1958
under Electricity (Supply) Act 1948 is taking prime responsibility
of integrated power development in the State with the assistance of
North Eastern Electric Power Corporation (NEEPCO), established by
the Government of India in 1976 for hydel and thermal generation of
power in the region and Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd. (PGCIL),
established in 1989 for integrated transmission system in the country. |
14.1.2
|
. Assam
accounts for only a small fraction i.e. 0.16 per cent of the total
generation of electricity in the country during 2000-2001. On the
contrary, consumption of power in the State has been increasing in
the recent years. The average per capita consumption of electricity
in the State was 120 Kwh. in 2000-2001 and 140 Kwh. in 2001-2002 as
reported by the ASEB. |
|
|
| INSTALLED CAPACITY AND GENERATION
OF POWER: |
14.2.0.
|
The
installed capacity of power has remained the same at 574.4 MW since1997-98
till date. The power generation in the State has gradually declined
from the year 1996-97 and this downward trend continued till 2002-2003.
During the year 2001-2002, the generation of power has decreased by
10.1 per cent as compared to the previous year and it further declined
by 11.2 per cent during the year 2002-2003. The installed capacity
of generating plant and generation of power in the State during the
last few years are shown in the table 14.1 and 14.2. |
|
table 14.1 |
|
table 14.2 |
|
Click here to view the Graphical
Represantation of Power Position in A.S.E.B. Sysytem |
|
Click here to view the Graphical
Represantation of Consumption of Electricity by Type
of Use (in M.U.) |
| POWER SUPPLY POSITION : |
14.3.0.
|
Since
the past several years the overall power supply position in the State
has not been much satisfactory. The power supply position in Assam
under Assam State Electricity Board is shown in the Table-14.3. |
14.3.1
|
In
order to meet the domestic demand, the State continued to purchase
power from other sources. The amount of power purchased have been
increasing every year to meet the growing domestic demand as a result
of depletion in power generation under ASEB’s own system. During
2001-2002, the net import of power by the State was 2461.182 MU and
the same further increased to 2582.737 MU during 2002-2003. The Table
14.4 shows the power generated within the State and power
purchased from the other sources by the State during the last three
years. |
|
|
| POWER CONSUMPTION: |
14.4.0.
|
The
consumption of electricity in the State has increased to 1783.913
MU Kwh during 2002-2003 as against 1682.978 MU Kwh during 2001-2002,
thereby registering an increase of electricity consumption by 6.0
per cent in the State over the year. The number of consumers have
also increased to 9,48,148 as on March 2002 from 9,02,196 as on March
2001. The pattern of consumption of power in the State shows that
consumption was highest in respect of domestic sector followed by
industrial sector and tea sector of the State. During the year 2002-2003,
domestic sector accounted for 37.1 per cent of the total consumption
of power in the State followed by industrial sector 17.5 per cent
and tea sector 14.5 per cent of the total power consumption. As compared
to the previous year the consumption of power in the domestic sector
has increased by more than 16 per cent whereas the power consumption
in the industrial sector and also in the tea sector have decreased
by 17.1 per cent and 12.2 per cent respectively. An idea about the
pattern of power consumption and number of consumers in the State
may be seen from the Table
14.5. |
|
|
| RURAL ELECTRIFICATION: |
14.5.0.
|
The total number of villages electrified in Assam was 19039 as on
March 2003, out of the 24685 inhabited villages of the State as per
1991 Census. Thus, the percentage of villages electrified in the State
was 77.13 per cent at the end of March 2003. |
