Heavy loss for fertilizer units

By Our Special Correspondent

NEW DELHI, JAN. 2.Industry associations today estimated that losses owing to the northern region power crisis could range from Rs. 250 crores to Rs. 500 crores with the fertilizer industry alone suffering a loss of Rs. 140 crores.

The Confederation of Indian Industry said the crisis had caused ``tremendous hardship'' to the industry. The Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry called for the implementation of ``long overdue'' power reforms.

The FICCI said the crisis had resulted in a loss of 2.04 lakh tonnes of fertiliser output. The alkali industry had incurred a production loss of 30 lakh tonnes. The distillery industry has also lost 4000 mandays of work in 60 units resulting in a Rs. 10 lakh loss.

The CII said industry might have suffered losses of around Rs. 250 to Rs. 500 crores. This was despite the operation of back-up diesel generators in many units. In addition, the intangible losses suffered by the service industry such as hospitals and Railways and the inconvenience caused to the general public, would put the overall loss at a much higher figure.

The CII said the distribution system might have collapsed owing to lack of protective devices and inadequate supervision to detect and correct disturbances. The crisis could be attributed to frequency changes beyond normal operational levels. This, according to the CII and the FICCI, underscores the need for pursuing power sector reforms and putting in place better transmission and distribution systems.

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Section  : Business
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