Power cuts: BJP MLA reprimands officials, seeks permanent fix

Dr Neeraj Bora called senior officials of LESA (Trans-Gomti) and reprimanded them over the deteriorating power situation

LUCKNOW With the state capital facing one of its worst electricity crises in recent years in wake of prolonged and unannounced power cuts during intense summer heat, BJP MLA Dr Neeraj Bora raised the issue with energy minister AK Sharma, UP Power Corporation chairman Ashish Goyal and MVVNL managing director Riya Kejriwal.

The crisis is most severe in Faizullaganj and adjoining areas under the North Assembly constituency, where residents have reportedly endured continuous power disruptions for the last three days. (Pic for representation)

The MLA’s intervention has become significant because it contradicts repeated government claims of stable electricity supply in urban areas.

The crisis is most severe in Faizullaganj and adjoining areas under the North Assembly constituency, where residents have reportedly endured continuous power disruptions for the last three days. Responding to mounting complaints from residents, Bora called senior officials of LESA (Trans-Gomti), and reprimanded them over the deteriorating power situation.

The MLA highlighted severe outages in Krishna Lok Colony, Preeti Nagar, Shyam Vihar Colony along with several parts of Faizullaganj. He instructed the department to ensure immediate restoration of uninterrupted power supply and demanded a permanent solution instead of temporary fixes.

Another city MLA Ravidas Mehrotra of the Samajwadi Party said the fact that a ruling party MLA had to complain against the power department reflects the seriousness of the crisis. “If this is Lucknow’s situation, what about the rest of UP,” he asked.

The power situation here has continued to worsen with multiple technical failures being reported from different areas. On Tuesday, a transformer caught fire in Madeyganj while another transformer breakdown was reported from Malihabad. In Rajajipuram, angry residents reportedly reached the power substation in protest against prolonged outages. In Chander Nagar, locals stormed a substation following extended blackouts in Natkhera. Chinhat witnessed nearly six hours of power disruption, while several localities in Alambagh faced outages lasting more than three-and-a-half hours on Monday night.

As public outrage mounted, UPPCL MD Nitish Kumar held a high-level review meeting and instructed all distribution companies to ensure uninterrupted electricity supply during the ongoing heatwave. He directed senior officers to remain on alert, monitor power supply closely and ensure damaged transformers are replaced within the stipulated time. He also sought explanations from multiple senior officials over delays in projects, transformer failures and poor monitoring. Strict warnings were reportedly issued under a “zero tolerance” policy against negligence.

Madhyanchal Vidyut Vitaran Nigam Limited MD Riya Kejriwal visited BBAU substation and other substations to monitor power supply.