TN to move SC seeking direction to Centre to reallocate power

A day after blaming the Centre for the acute power crisis in the State, Tamil Nadu today decided to move the Supreme Court seeking a direction to the Union Government to reallocate power to be surrendered by Delhi government to it.

A resolution to this effect was passed at a Cabinet meeting chaired by Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, an official release said.

Jayalalithaa had on October 24 wrote to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh seeking his intervention to reallocate to her State 1,721 MW of power to be surrendered by Delhi Government as Tamil Nadu faced acute power shortage.

While the demand was 12,000 MW, the availability was only to the tune of 8,000 MW leaving a gap of 4,000 MW to the State. Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (TANGEDCO) has signed agreements with other States for the purchase of 1,100 MW, the resolution said.

"Despite the agreement signed (by TANGEDCO), the failure of Power Grid Corporation of India to take any step led to the State not getting the power", the resolution said.

Though Union Minister of State for Power K C Venugopal said the Centre would consider allocation of additional power to Tamil Nadu, he later observed that it would not be feasible to do so in view of the "overloading of inter-regional transmission system", it said.

"The Tamil Nadu cabinet has decided to approach the Supreme Court to direct the Centre and the Power Grid Corporation of India to allocate the power to be surrendered by the Delhi Government to meet the State's power demand, as it is their duty and responsibility", it said.