Amid a severe heatwave that has gripped almost the entire country, India’s peak power demand touched 215,882 MW or 215.88 GW, on April 18, breaching the previous record of 210,793 MW set on June 10 last year.
According to a Moneycontrol report, the deficit power demand, that is the power demand that could not be met by power utilities, on April 18 was 2,021 MW, taking the overall power demand on the day to 217,902 MW or 217.9 GW.
India has been experiencing extreme weather conditions during the month of April, with temperatures already breaching 40 degree Celsius, the threshold at which a heatwave condition is declared in plains. Remarkably, India experienced its hottest February on record in 2023, surpassing all previous temperature measurements since the inception of record-keeping in 1901.
Union Power Minister RK Singh reportedly said the electricity demand is increasing at 10.5% annually, adding that the country is ready to deal with the surging demand. The minister further told Moneycontrol that they had taken measures to ensure there were enough coal stocks and gas capacities to support renewable energy capacities. They had issued directions for all imported coal-based power plants to operate at full capacity, indicating their preparedness for any peak demands. According to the minister, there would not be any issues during peak times.
As temperatures soar, many Indian states have either revised school timings for kids or preponed summer vacations. Odisha, West Bengal, Jharkhand, Tripura, Meghalaya, and Uttar Pradesh have all changed school timings or declared off days in view of the soaring mercury.
According to a study by Ramit Debnath and colleagues at the University of Cambridge, 90% of India’s total area is under “extremely cautious” or “danger zone” of being hit by heatwaves, which are becoming more frequent due to climate change.
