Fire incident at thermal plant PSEB Chairman assesses damage
Tribune News Service

Ropar, March 12
To assess the damage caused to machinery during a minor fire in unit number 6, Punjab State Electricity Board (PSEB) Chairman HS Brar today visited the Guru Gobind Singh Super Thermal Plant today.

But the chairman was greeted with black flags carried by the employees, who were protesting against the various policies of the PSEB. The employees were acting on a call given by employees joint action committee of the board.

Brar remained at the plant for more than two hours and discussed the matter with authorities. A fire broke out in unit number 6, leading to the suspension of electricity generation on March 10. Sources said it might take another 10 days for generation to start at the unit. The fire broke out on Tuesday afternoon and damaged more than 400 cables. Member, Generation, GS Sra had visited the plant on Tuesday evening to assess the damage.

The PSEB may suffer a financial loss of more than Rs 15 crore due to closure of this unit. It may take around 10 days to replace charred cables and synchronise the unit’s generation. This also includes generation loss. The unit was generating 50 lakh units daily worth Rs 1.5 crore.

According to sources, this is the fourth incidence of fire in stage III. Earlier unit number 5 remained closed for about a month when a fire broke out in the cable gallery on June 15 last. Fire incidences had also occurred earlier on May 16 and August 29 last year resulting in tripping of unit.

According to a senior plant official, continuous emission of coal dust from coal mills and resultant accumulation of coal dust on steam pipes and cables leads to fire. Poor maintenance and upkeep add to the woes.