Repeated power cuts leave residents fuming

LUDHIANA: Residents had a hard time yet again on Tuesday, while dealing with unscheduled power cuts, as the heavy downpour began early in the morning, and several areas of the city went without power. Among the worst-affected were areas around Model Town, where power supply was suspended repeatedly. It started in the morning, and there were frequent cuts lasting from half an hour to three hours in different areas. Residents had been suffering for the past three days due to power cuts.

Kushpreet Kaur, a resident of Dashmesh Nagar, stated: “Power cuts have become a routine these days. Every week, there’s one or another issue with the electricity department, and power supply is suspended. The problem is that everything runs with electricity. Uninformed power cuts affect each and every individual in the city. Water is a necessity, but due to long power cuts, there are times people run out of water in their tanks, leading to a number of problems.”

Rashmi Madaan, a resident of Model Town, said power outage leads to several problems. “There are many people who cannot enjoy modern facilities. They have no option, other than bearing the scorching heat and humidity. Generators and inverters too work for some time, as generators work on diesel, leading to pollution, and inverters run out of battery if used for long. It’s annoying to accept the fact that despite living in a power surplus state, the distribution network is unable to cope with the load.”

On Monday too, it started pouring heavily around 7.30am, but power cut started half an hour prior to the rains. Similarly, on Sunday too, there was a six-hour long power outage. A day before, the power supply was suspended in the entire city due to melting of a conductor at the 220kV Lalton Kalan sub-station because of overload. Power supply was suspended from 7am to late in the afternoon. Though Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) had informed in advance regarding the power cut, residents were disappointed, as it ruined their weekend. The increased level of humidity added fuel to fire.