Date:21/11/2008 URL: http://www.thehindu.com/2008/11/21/stories/2008112155780500.htm

Tamil Nadu

Hosiery manufacturers express concern over power cut

Staff Reporter

Displeasure conveyed to TNEB Chairman

LTCT consumers subjected to 20 per cent power cut on the basis of energy consumption
Grievances of industrialists will be looked into, says Board Chairman

Tirupur: The hosiery manufacturers in unison have expressed their displeasure over the imposition of 20 per cent energy cut on the base energy consumption imposed by the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board on units running on Low Tension Current Transformers (LTCT) from November 1.

Memorandum

In a memorandum submitted to TNEB Chairman S. Machendranathan while he was on a visit to the city on Wednesday, the textile entrepreneurs pointed out that the calculation procedure being adopted to ascertain the quantum of restriction based on peak consumption should not be applied to hosiery industry universally.

“Our peak consumption is subjected to seasonal variations and mostly the average consumption is very low,” they pointed out.

The TNEB, in its order dated October 22, had stated that LTCT consumers would be subjected to 20 per cent power cut on the basis of energy consumption which would be worked out by computing the average of any three consecutive months advantageous to the consumers, between October 2007 and September 2008.

The businessmen explained to the TNEB Chairman that such restrictions, if not lifted, would be catastrophe for the industry in the knitwear cluster of Tirupur, which had already been bogged down by the recession in the Western market as well as the prolonged load shedding.

Dyers’ demand

Meanwhile, dyeing unit owners affiliated to Dyers’ Association of Tirupur (DAT) requested Mr. Machendranathan to exempt common effluent treatment plants from load shedding altogether.

Method

“Since the plants adopt aerobic biological method for treatment of effluents, it is necessary to have round-the-clock power to run the blowers non-stop for keeping the micro organisms alive,” DAT general secretary K. Krishnan explained to the TNEB Chairman.

Micro organisms

Each time the micro organisms die, it would take us another 45 days to grow them. “Till such time, CETPs cannot be operated,” the dyers said.

The TNEB Chairman told the industrialists that their grievances would be studied.