Schools in the Indian city of Coimbatore recently suffered from both expected and unexpected cuts in electrical power as they conducted their annual competitive examinations. While written examinations could still take place, exams in physics and computer science could not be conducted without electrical power. Additionally, many families near the school also found their homes without power, which made it difficult for students to study, to do their homework, and to get to school on time.
Standard XII students from City Corporation Higher Secondary School expressed frustration over the outages. “We were hopeful of scoring good marks in practical exam,” said one. “But most of us do not have computers at home and we are not able to use the computers at school to prepare for the computer science exam.”
Many private schools in Coimbatore have sufficient funding to pay for uninterrupted power supplies (UPS). Exams could still be conducted, but students lacking power at home were unable to prepare for their exams as much as they would have liked. In government schools, which lack UPS, principals were told to call their local Electricity Board Offices and to schedule their exams around scheduled power cuts.
The problems in Coimbatore underscore one of the most serious long-term threats to economic growth in India – the inability of the power supply to keep up with the population’s power demands. Rolling blackouts, both scheduled and unscheduled, are common in India. In some rural areas, homes and other buildings have no power for approximately 15 hours per day. In many towns and cities, blackouts for several hours per day are common.
Sanctions against Iran have created additional difficulties for the Indian power supply because India imported much of its oil from that country. Stagnant domestic coal production and lower-than-expected gas output have also worsened the crisis. Environmental clearances for mining and power plant construction are slow. Shortages of funding and bureaucratic squabbling are also blamed for the mess.
India currently runs a peak hour deficit of about 12 percent. While the country has 10 percent of the world’s coal reserves, challenges in land acquisition and environmental clearances for mining force the country to import coal from other nations. Costly imports make power more expensive, which results in slower procurement.
While students in Coimbatore labored in the dark on Feb. 15, Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh brokered a deal with Coal India to step up production. Industry leaders had told the Prime Minister’s office that Coal India was asking for signed fuel supply agreements but only guaranteeing 50 percent of the required quantity of coal. Singh’s deal will provide relief to power plants with a capacity of over 50,000 megawatts.
For students in Coimbatore, performance on competitive exams could determine whether or not they are admitted to the post-secondary program of their choice. If India fails to resolve their electrical grid problems, and if students are missing out on educational opportunities because of constant power cuts, then India’s economic future could be as dim as the lights overhead.
Edited by Carrie Schmelkin