Patiala: As Punjab‘s power crisis deepened over the weekend, Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) has issued show-cause notices to two private thermal plants — NPL Rajpura and Talwandi Sabo Power Plant (TSPL) — seeking explanations for their failure to maintain adequate coal stocks amid soaring electricity demand.The notices come at a time when a thermal unit each at both the plants remains non-operational due to technical faults, with NPL Rajpura’s unit shut down since Sept 10 and TSPL’s unit since Sept 11, further straining the state’s already stretched power supply.In view of the escalating crisis, Chief Secretary has convened an emergency meeting in Chandigarh tomorrow, which will be attended by officials of private independent power producers (IPPs) operating in Punjab besides PSPCL officials. The high-level meeting is expected to review the coal stock shortfall, the prolonged shutdown of key generating units, and the mounting overdrawal from the central grid.Industrial consumers across the state bore the heaviest impact on Saturday, facing phased power cuts of up to 10 hours, beginning before 4 pm — a marked escalation from the four-to-six-hour cuts imposed on Friday.Confirming the development, PSPCL Director Generation Punnerdeep Singh said, “Notices have been issued to both these IPPs – NPL and TSPL – and explanation has been sought from them over coal stock maintenance. A meeting has also been called by Chief Secretary to discuss the issues.”The crisis has been building through the week. Maximum demand touched 16,437 MW at 10:15 am on Friday, against 16,292 MW on Thursday, and well above last year’s corresponding peak of 11,339 MW. Coal reserves stood at just seven days at NPL and four days at TSPL even before the latest shutdowns.With two units already shut and now both IPPs under scrutiny for coal management, the state utility has been forced to lean further on the central grid. Demand crossed 16,000 MW again around 3 pm on Saturday, pushing withdrawal beyond 11,400 MW. By Saturday evening, at around 7:45 pm, demand eased to 13,049 MW, with the state’s own generation — hydro, thermal and IPPs combined — contributing only 4,492 MW. Grid withdrawal stood at 8,560 MW against a scheduled 8,177 MW, resulting in an overdrawal of 383 MW.Officials said tomorrow’s meeting will be crucial in determining accountability for the coal stock lapses and charting a plan to restore normal supply, with district headquarters also having faced four-hour cuts amid the ongoing shortage.TSPL and NPL officials could not be contacted for comments.
