The commerce ministry has requested the Power Division to keep factories producing essential items, including edible oil-producing units, out of the purview of the current phase of regulated power cuts.
The ministry made the request following a recent decision at the third meeting of the Taskforce Committee on Essential Items held on July 19 last.
The decision has also been sent to different state agencies, including the Prime Minister's Office (PMO).
Leading local manufacturers have been producing a good number of essentials like rice, flour, edible oil, sugar, salt, and lentil.
The producing activities are quite impossible without uninterrupted power supply, a source said.
Contacted, a senior commerce ministry official said, "We're in favour of keeping consumer item producing units out of the government's power cut mechanism."
"We have already discussed this issue with the authorities concerned," he told the FE.
The official further said, "Measures have been taken to keep prices and supply of essential items stable throughout the country."
The power cut in the factories, including those producing commodities, might disrupt supply of the items in the market and contribute to the potential hike in their prices, he added.
Earlier, the country's local industrial groups also urged the commerce ministry to keep their industrial units out of the ongoing power cut mechanism.
A power division source, on condition of anonymity, said, "The recommendation of uninterrupted power supply to the factories producing essentials is not unreasonable. We are trying to keep all types of industrial units out of the power cut."
