Chandigarh: Students in rural Haryana will not be able to give power failure as an excuse for poor performance in annual examinations this year.

Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda on Monday directed power distribution agencies to ensure that all rural areas get power supply for two hours in the morning and four hours in the evening regularly so that the studies were not affected during examination days.

The examinations are scheduled to begin next month.

The power distribution agencies have been asked to supply power to the rural areas by regulating power to the industrial and other sectors during these hours.

A spokesman of the Haryana power utilities said demand for power had shot up due to prolonged winter this year whereas the generation of power was lower due to less rainfall.

"The utilities is supplying 650 lakh units everyday which is 70 to 100 lakh units more than the demand in the corresponding period last year. The demand in the agriculture and industrial sector has increased tremendously," he said.

The state government was purchasing power at high rates ranging from Rs.8 to Rs.10 per unit to overcome the demand. Power is also being purchased from states like Maharashtra and Chhattisgarh to overcome shortage this season, the spokesman added. IANS

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