Telangana ready for summer power needs, public can dial 1912 for emergencies: Deputy CM Bhatti

Hyderabad: Deputy Chief Minister Bhatti Vikramarka Mallu ordered the officials to ensure there would be no interruption in power supply even for a minute in the coming summer months. He said that the State government is ready to supply electricity to meet the demand during the ensuing summer.

The deputy CM held a review meeting with officials under the jurisdiction of SPDCL on an action plan for the supply of electricity in the summer season at the BR Ambedkar Secretariat here on Tuesday.

Bhatti Vikramarka reviewed the details about the demand for power last summer, the expected demand this summer and the plans being formulated to meet the demand.

‘Should be ready to meet any emergencies’

Deputy CM Bhatti Vikramarka said that officials and staff should be alert around the clock as the power supply is an essential and sensitive issue.

“The electricity department officers at all levels should conduct meetings to evaluate their preparedness to tackle the problems they might face at the field level and awareness should be created even among consumers,” he said.

The government is ready to provide all the facilities required at the field level to the officers and they could ask for anything, he said.

Do not hesitate to call me in emergencies, says deputy CM

“Everyone in the Energy Department, from lineman to minister, should work like one family. Any problem at the field level should be immediately reported to the superior officer by phone and if there is no response, it should be escalated to the next higher officer and the staff should not hesitate even to call me if required,” the deputy CM told the officers.

‘Complete all pending sub stations by March 1’

Referring to the services provided by the electricity department in Hyderabad city through emergency vehicles, he said such services should also be extended to rural areas.

The deputy CM instructed that the construction of all sub-stations and other works should be completed by March 1. He also reviewed the data on the increasing load burden on the sub-stations during the last three years.

‘Reward hardworking employees’

Bhatti directed the officials to start giving incentives in the electricity department to staff who put in good service. He also recalled that in the recent floods, staff worked hard even during midnight for the restoration of the power supply. Such persons should be recognised and rewarded, he said.

The deputy CM said officials should create awareness among staff on changes taking place in the energy sector. “It is necessary to educate staff about the changes in the alternative power generation,” he added.

Dial 1912 for power supply emergencies

Bhatti stresses the need to provide publicity for the emergency phone number 1912 for resolving power supply issues. Every consumer should be sent an SMS about this number and the number should be mentioned even in electricity bills despatched to the consumers.

The government is ready to allocate funds for strengthening the department with the required number of staff and technical support.

The deputy CM who is also the energy minister reviewed with CEOs of different wings about the availability of equipment in the stores and measures being taken to meet the demand in the coming days. He inquired about measures taken to address the grievances and complaints received during last year.

Energy Department principal secretary Sundeep Kumar Sultania, Transco CMD Krishna Bhaskar, SPDCL CMD Musharaff Ali, Energy Department OSD Surender Reddy and others participated.