# New PSPCL chief holds first meeting, stresses power supply 2026-09-19T22:11:30+00:00 | Governance | Indian Opinion Desk Corroboration: 1 independent outlet Gurkirat Kirpal Singh, the newly appointed chairman-cum-managing director of Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL), held his first meeting with directors and senior officials on Friday at the utility's Patiala headquarters. He directed them to ensure uninterrupted and reliable electricity supply across the state, with a focus on providing eight hours of power to farmers for agricultural activities as per schedule. Singh's appointment comes days after the Punjab government replaced former PSPCL CMD Basant Garg amid a deepening power crisis marked by prolonged cuts affecting domestic, agricultural and industrial consumers. The reshuffle followed protests by farmers and industrialists over erratic power supply. During the meeting, Singh reviewed the functioning of PSPCL and Punjab State Transmission Corporation Limited (PSTCL). He sought details on electricity demand and supply, power generation and purchases, thermal plant performance, coal availability, and billing, and stressed strengthening field-level monitoring and prompt resolution of consumer complaints. ## Indian Opinion Analysis Punjab's power crisis has been building for months, with the state's thermal plants running below capacity due to coal shortages and mounting dues to generators. The replacement of the top PSPCL official signals the government's urgency to address a crisis that threatens its electoral base among both farmers and industry. The new CMD's immediate focus on coal availability and plant performance suggests the supply-side bottlenecks remain acute. With summer demand receding, the real test will come next spring, when peak load returns and the state must have resolved its fuel supply and payment issues. The next quarterly coal allocation from Coal India and the payment cycle to independent power producers will be early indicators of whether the turnaround is on track. ## Coverage - hindustantimes.com Tags: Gurkirat Kirpal Singh, power crisis, PSPCL, Punjab, Punjab State Transmission Corporation Limited Canonical: https://indianopinion.org/new-pspcl-chief-holds-first-meeting-stresses-power-supply/ License: Summary and commentary (c) Indian Opinion, reusable with attribution. Facts belong to the linked sources. Cite: https://indianopinion.org/new-pspcl-chief-holds-first-meeting-stresses-power-supply/#story-in-brief