Centre working with states for 24x7 power supply: Piyush Goyal

New Delhi, Feb 26: Government is preparing action plans in partnership with states to provide 24x7 power supply besides initiating steps to address electricity shortage, Union Minister Piyush Goyal said today.

Increasing generation capacity, augmenting coal production and constructing of new transmission lines are among the measures being taken to meet power shortage, the Minister of State for Power said in Lok Sabha while replying to a question.

Noting that the government has received requests for allocation of power, Goyal said there was a need to expand the capacity of electricity grids in order to increase supply and added that the government was taking remedial steps to meet power shortage.

The government has taken initiative to "prepare state specific action plans for providing 24x7 power for all in partnership with the states," he said during Question Hour.

Listing out the measures, Goyal said an addition of 1,18,537 MW generation capacity was being targeted during the 12th Five-Year Plan ending 2016-17. "The gap in indigenous coal availability is being met through enhanced coal production and coal imports for increased generation by thermal plants," he said.

Among other steps, 1,07,440 circuit kilometres of transmission lines is to be constructed by 2016-17.

Further, Goyal said that efforts were being made for "expeditious resolution of issues relating to environmental and forest clearances for facilitating early completion of generation and transmission projects".

PTI