The annual electricity use in India fell for the first time in at least 35 years during the monetary year ending March 2021, as per Reuters analysis of the government data demonstrates.
The significant change was primarily due to unprecedented national wide and state-level lockdowns imposed to hold the spread of the coronavirus.
Power generation in India fell 0.2% during the
financial year 2020-21 evaluated with the last year, an analysis of the data from federal grid operator Power System Operation Corporation Limited (POSOCO) demonstrated.
Due to the imposition of lockdown electricity production declined for six straight months ending in August.
Yet, the demand for electricity has picked up since, with the generation growing 23.3% in March from a year before, the seventh consecutive monthly rise.
Electricity demand has been steadily rising this year because of the growth in industrial activity across the country.
The lifted demand could also be due to higher temperatures being recorded in March in North India, which may be leading to greater utilization of air conditioning.
India had entered a nationwide lockdown last March as coronavirus cases rose to approximately 500.
