Malayalees rejoice at KSEB power cuts
June 29th, 2008
It may give intense pleasure to those who are living outside Kerala to know that our beloved Kerala State Electricity Board has started 30 minute power cuts for everyone. This is affectionately called as load shedding. The monsoon god seems angry with Kerala and this year we may see power cuts for a few hours every day.
Here is another funny thing. Our government is trying hard to bring more employment in the state by telling companies to come here and setup factories. There is only one problem. After you start your factory and then bribe all the trade unions to take care of your union problems you realize that there is no electricity available! It also helps that diesel is now costly.
There are two hydro electric projects that can bring stability to the electricity generation for some time. One is the athirappilly power project and the second one is at silent valley. The silent valley project is sabotaged by lion tailed monkey and there is no hope. Athirappally project shows some hope but there are enough intellectuals in Kerala to block that also. So in short prepare for 5 hour or 10 hour power cuts soon.
But all is not lost. I have some "socialistic" ideas. Do you know that this word was added to our constitution by Indira Gandhi?
My Proposals to handle power situation in Kerala
- Introduce ration system for electricity. Allot every individual 0.3 unit of electricity per day. This will be very helpful to rationing officers who are jealous of RTO officials getting more bribe.
- Start a new corporation called "Kerala State Power Monitoring Corporation". This corporation needs to be a dedicated corporation for monitoring Kerala’s electricity shortage continuously. Allot a Mercedes Benz/Skoda Octavia for the corporation chairman and other top officials.
- To reduce power requirements make Wednesday a mandatory public holiday including shops and government offices.
- Add a new electricity surcharge for people above poverty line. I recommend this to be 25% of the bill amount. Use this money to advertise in paper and TV to switch off at least one light every hour.
- Ban incandescent bulbs from market. Authorize health inspectors to raid any shop which sells this bulb. Health inspectors will surely appreciate increase in bribe.
- Fit motion sensors in government offices to switch off fans and lights when there is no one in the office. This will substantially reduce electricity requirements especially since NGO unions are always protesting or organizing political meetings outside!
- Ban the use of refrigerators. Just like the gun license introduce a refrigerator license. There should be a set of guidelines on who can get a fridge. For example if there is a diabetes guy who needs to preserve medicines in fridge. Authorize Kerala police to raid houses to find hidden fridge. My dear policemen, think about increase in your income!
- Remove all street lights. Who need street lighting? Light from cars and other vehicles are enough right?
- Ban washing machines. This means that women will have to hand wash clothes and overall will improve the health of our overweight women!
- Start a new research institute for "power generation from lightning strikes". If we can utilize all the lightning strikes it is estimated that we can generate 200MW of electricity! Appoint a scientist (read: stupid political slave) as the head of this institute.
- Ban all use of computers in government offices, reservation counters etc. This will give more jobs and reduce our electricity requirements.
PS: Hey guys another good news just came in. There is a harthal in Idukki tomorrow. Enjoy!
PPS: I seriously think that India should introduce capital punishment for calling harthal. This proposal is no more ridiculous than calling harthal every day!
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June 29th, 2008 at 7:32 pm
You are really scaring me. Some politician will see this post and will implement all these ideas.
June 29th, 2008 at 10:23 pm
Bowing to ye, man!
I’ve another idea, why dont we pull the curtains on KSEB and its associate offices all over the state? We could really save some serious energy that way.
On a serious note, this happens because we are relying too much on the hydroelectric power. Leave aside Silent Valley, if we gonna construct more river based power sources its only going to get worse in the future, given the state our planet is heading to. Alternate sources of energy needs to be seriously looked into, be it wind, diesel or or even nuclear.
June 29th, 2008 at 10:32 pm
Maybe its time tat we looked at our own consumption
June 29th, 2008 at 11:56 pm
We still eulogize the Kuravan who showed the site for Idukki project and continue our Hydro Electric journey.
Alternate sources is the need of the hour.
Diesel,Naphta are ruled out! Crude prices!
Nuclear /Wind/Waves seem to be the option.
June 30th, 2008 at 10:08 am
Wind and nuclear power a the way to go! Hope our Communist GODs set aside their pride issues and Anti american sentiments and allow the Govt to sign the nuke deal. If anyone is going to do it right its Manmohan singhs’ Govt…I Dont expect BJP to do it later…
btw..post ur thoughts on nukedeal..big issue na..would love to know ur stand:)
June 30th, 2008 at 10:09 am
Wind/Waves can produce only a fraction of energy we need. The only real cheap alternative is nuclear energy. But think about this.
All of us agreed to build a nuclear power plant somewhere in central Kerala. Now what happens when the operators of the power plant goes on a sudden strike? Boom!!!! and parasuraman will finally know from heaven/hell that his axe throwing was a complete waste.
Jokes apart, we really have only two options now - nuclear or hydroelectric. Hydroelectric is the cheapest, most enviornment friendly option. Many countries (canada for example) is trying to squeeze the last bit of energy from hydroelectrical plants since it is the best option.
Silent Valley and Athirappilly projects can meet atleast 10-20 years of our demand without going nuclear. The enviornmental impact is largely a myth. Have you been to idukki power generation area? The power project actually provided required government protection for the area.
Nuclear should be our last and final option. I recommed reading about Chernobyl disaster and what happened to the area around it.
June 30th, 2008 at 10:12 am
@VJ,
nuke deal is not a Kerala specific issue
June 30th, 2008 at 2:38 pm
Hydroelectric-Hue and cry from all environmentalists.Massive blogging action would follow.Govt will try cajoling all these people and may end up in building something that does not touch the fragile ecology
Nuclear-As long as the above said breed exists, nothing can be done.
So what are we left with?
Can’t even imagine the relocation of people and related problems that may come with any of these projects.
An express way(Former Govt. -MK Muneer’s dream)-did not take off due to hazaar reasons. Would a new power project happen?
June 30th, 2008 at 2:47 pm
Keralam has huge preventable wastage of electricity, much more than the proposed new projects would generate. if new projects are fruitfyl up to 30 per cent will go waste.
just what you call ‘touching’ this is lines being shorted to trees and objects is as good as a big dam
but this needs an efficient KSEB-
interests of Unions and politicians in power will not allow this.
so why not generate more even if it destroys nature
thomas
June 30th, 2008 at 3:16 pm
@nihkil,
Express way? Forget about Express highway. The least we can do is to ensure that current national highways are improved.
@Thomas,
You have good point. Electricity theft and wastage is much more than what can be saved by switching off a light!
Talking about electricity board, one of my friends just got a new connection after paying bribe and following up 10 times. In the end everything was ok, except that there is no electicity meter in stock! Can you image that? KSEB doesn’t have 3 phase meters in its stock!!! When enquired he was told that he could try contacting some politicians or ministers. They could divert stock from somewhere else!
July 1st, 2008 at 10:43 am
Either you are serious or you are joking. If your intention was to be humorous you succeeded. If you are serious, these proposals will turn the state into anarchy.
July 3rd, 2008 at 12:48 pm
Hartal and load shedding is the favorite past time of Keralites. Laziness is the art or craft which we have mastered and spending time watching stupid TV serials and reality shows we are going stronger and mightier
July 4th, 2008 at 4:41 pm
The points 1,3,4,7,8,9 and 11 are ridiculous - they cannot be implemented!!! But I do believe that there should be rationing for shops and govt offices. But Kerala came into this situation only because KSEB and its minister thought that Monsoon was going to go strong on June 1st. If we go by the past 2 years excluding this year, monsoon was week in Kerala in June. A straight season from July to December was the norm, may be because of global warming. The summer rains also added to the delay this time. So, it is only because of the mismanagement of the KSEB officials and its minister that we people are suffering. Though water in dams was overflowing last year, they wasted all the water and sold power to neighbouring states. But when time came for us, nobody including Centre is helping us. So let the Govt learn from this and not sell excess electricity. Monsoon is not a forecastable thing, especially during these periods of global warming!!!!!
July 4th, 2008 at 8:10 pm
2nd point - HA HA HA LOL….. Mercedes Benz/Skoda Octavia in a poor state (where the economy is supported on stilts by NRKs)and country like ours?? Already govt officals are noted for lowest efficiency among the working class in the state!
July 5th, 2008 at 11:12 pm
Govt needs to give solar panels to each household at half the market price, instead of going for fossil fuel powered electricity generation projects.
July 7th, 2008 at 10:53 am
It is better to have more load shedding than price hike - at least people with invertors can survive
July 8th, 2008 at 4:24 pm
All I see is a biased rant than any logical reasoning in this post! Sad to say but it is unfortunate that people take up to rhetorics to factual discussion to prove thier point thing the loudest wins. Sadly again, it is not about winning (as the whining seen here) where are the facts….
July 8th, 2008 at 8:37 pm
You say it is rant and rhetorics and cannot see facts, coz you are seeing thru a red glass!!! Ramove your red glass and open your eyes. Don’t fill the hole with darkness (Mal adage):D like the commies do!!!!!
July 9th, 2008 at 12:16 am
If anyone has taken this article seriously, please get your head checked by a psychiatrist. You may be missing the humour gland in your brain!
July 10th, 2008 at 4:04 am
Well, i did visit a psychiatrist recently and that makes me qualified to take your article seriously. And it is only the Athirapilly part that in which I beg to differ with the pleadings and all the energy of my psychotic brain. Save Athirapilly Waterfalls from the throes of the cruel Hydel Electricity Project. You would ask why cruel. Why not. I’m psychotic. An indefinite satyagraha is going on at Athirappilly demanding the scrapping of the proposed 163 MW Athirappilly HEP in Chalakudy river since 25th February 2008 By this time more than 90 different social, political(when i say political i suggest you check at the protest gatherings… you’ll find all parties protesting together.. beginning Congress-I, CPI, BJP, IUML, PDP, Janata Dal, BSP and the rest except the ruling party), environmental , youth based organisations from across the State of Kerala have participated in the Satyagraha. All of them are fools and me, I’m psychotic, n Athirapilly just another fool’s paradise you might think. It’s just a sordid tale of manipulations. I can keep going on and on like a mental wreck but I suggest you study all the pdf document and word documents that I have put up relating to Athirapilly on the link before making any future comments like a crass intellectual that you actually are with more insensibilities than sensibilities(We are on the same track here) Here is the link: http://sites.google.com/site/save-athirapilly-waterfalls/ Check it for yourself brother
July 10th, 2008 at 8:53 am
Hi Gopal,
It again and again really saddens me that you guys don’t see the ground reality. Just today 25% powercut is introduced and there is a thermal surcharge on all consumers. We are having serious power generation issue and the best and the quickest solution is to build aathirappally and silent valley projects.
Instead of completely blocking all the hydro electric projects and taking the state to stone age, you should look for compromises. You can get the government to the protect the area around the power generation area. You can demand better compensation for people affected.
Do you think instead of building athirappally project, it is better to build a nuclear power plant at cochin? Just do a math man! Should we take risk of building something that can kill millions or should we do a compromise and submerge some trees? Get your priorities right - I know a lot enviornmentalists who would prefer getting a few humans killed than a monkey being harmed. They are worse than terrorists.
You say that all political parties joined the protest at athirappilly. But you forgot the part that it is the LOCALS who are concerned that they loose money.
Do you know of the money charged just to enter aathirappilly tourist centre? I guess the panchayath is earning crores of rupees fleecing tourists and they find it hard that hydro electric project may reduce the money flowing in.
The forest officials in Athirappilly simply take bribe from surrounding wood mills and there is a slow but consistent deforestation happening there. Here is a simple test, just visit the house of one of the forest officials there and tell me how much the wooden furniture is worth!
There are vested interests behind the protest. People like you may be innocent enviornmentalist not knowing the real motive behind stalling the project.
And finally I suggest you wake up to reality.
July 22nd, 2008 at 9:39 pm
No thermal surcharge on domestic users, Govt. If you want, you take more money from Hi-tension, extra high-tension users. And go and collect from those idiots who are robbing you and those not giving you the arrears.
August 4th, 2008 at 5:32 pm
Foolish and irresponsible these politicians and beauracracy are …. Otherwise how come now when rain came, they can’t prevent water wastage in dams, as they are not able to close the damaged shutters?
August 11th, 2008 at 8:44 am
This time when the electricity bill came, I got more bills. What are these charges? 1 is as deposit or is it? Is this is a trick byt the KSEB to wring more money from the customer? The other one seems to be thermal charge. Why does the KSEB not give any info on these excess bills?