Although power industry in India has made considerable progress since Independence, we need more power for faster development and prosperity.
The installed generating capacity of power has raised from 1700 MW in 1950 to 54000 today. Yet power shortage exists in many parts of the country because the demand for power has become more than the supply.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
The consumption of commercial energy is heading for an increase. From 339 MTCR (Million Tonnes of Coal Replacement) in 1982-83 it will rise to 1485 MTCR in 2004-05 as per estimates of the Government.
Keeping in view the importance of and the need for generation of more, our Government is spending nearly 30 per cent of the total plan investment towards production of energy-power, coal and petroleum products.
Image Source: ak.picdn.net
Despite these efforts, our country continues to suffer from shortage in energy because with the development process, the demand for energy is increasing by leaps and bounds.
It is estimated that if coal is used the way it is being consumed today there will be no coal on earth till the turn of the century. And crude oil will be there only for 200 years or so.
ADVERTISEMENTS:
Thus, in view of the above facts we can conclude that continued shortage and the ever-growing need for energy have resulted in “ENERGY CRISIS”.
From this arises the importance question: How to meet the growing need for energy ? We can find an answer in the following strategy adopted by the Government:
(1) Accelerated exploitation of domestic conventional energy resources – oil, coal, hydro and nuclear power
(2) Management of oil demand
ADVERTISEMENTS:
(3) Energy conservation
(4) Exploitation of renewable sources of energy like energy forestry and bio-gas, specially to meet the energy requirements of rural community
(5) Intensification of research and development in emerging energy technologies.
Saving energy is one of the significant elements of the above strategy. It has been discussed in the following pages.