Winter is not away

With a sharp dip in temperature for last two days, and a biting nip in the atmosphere, it looks like winter dispatched some early messages to us in the valley. Though we expect more sunny days ahead, but the signal is too loud to be missed; we should now brace up for the winter months. For those living in the valley and its adjoining areas, it means a lot in terms of preparations – from homes to markets to offices.

For the government it is a period of heightened responsibility. It is not just the weather playing havoc with road connectivity, and the consequent shortage of essential supplies in the market. Winters mount pressure on our healthcare system too. Our senior citizenry, particularly those in advanced age bracket, are most vulnerable to winter specific diseases. There is thus an increased rush of this segment of population to our hospitals and it has to be managed. Winter also results in a surge in certain other health related problems that are not age specific. That also adds to the pressure on our hospitals. Then there are falls and accidents that happen in winters and give our hospitals more patient load. Cumulatively, winters bring multiple health related problems that put great pressure on our healthcare service delivery systems. That means the government and the concerned officials should start preparing for winter related challenges from now onwards.

The most pressing area is that of power supply. In winters our demand for electricity goes way up than what it is in summers. Unfortunately we have seen over the decades that the gap between supply and demand becomes huge with the onset of winters. This winter, the demand for electricity is not going to be any different than what the pattern is. What adds to the demand now is the prevalence electric hamams, and other heating gadgets.

That means an additional pressure. A good sound byte is that a top official says that this winter the concerned agency is more prepared to face the challenge. With enhanced monitoring over the usage, as we have now covered considerable areas through smart meters, it is expected that the losses would be less, recovery optimal. It requires just a push on the side of supplies, and we can expect a reasonable supply of electricity this winter.