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After cyclone Tauktae, electricity continues to elude parts of Goa
Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant said that while power has been restored in many parts of Goa, in others it might be until tomorrow before they get electricity.
The electricity department continued to work on a war footing to restore power to parts of Goa that remained without electricity for nearly 100 hours since cyclone Tauktae flattened much of the state’s overhead electricity infrastructure.
Goa chief minister Pramod Sawant who has been travelling across the state to assess the damage said that while power has been restored in many parts of Goa, in others it might be until tomorrow (Thursday) before they get electricity.
“Some people’s power will be restored today, others will have to wait till tomorrow. The major loss has been of electricity infrastructure. We initially estimated it to be around 22-crore but I think it will go beyond that up to 40 crores,” Sawant said.
“Because there is no power, people also cannot pump water, so it’s a water problem as well,” Sawant added.
“Poles have uprooted in many locations. We do not have the manpower and have to bring the men from other states as well. I have asked them to spend funds from the disaster management funds,” he added.
State power secretary Kunal (he uses only first name), said that Goa’s power consumption has reached nearly pre-Tauktae levels pointing that power has been restored in most places.
“Goa Electricity Department is working round the clock to restore power supplies,” he said.
“With dedicated efforts and hard work of our frontline warriors viz linesmen and engineers, the supply of power is continuously rising and hoping to achieve pre-Tauktae level soon,” he added.
According to the electricity department’s data, the power supply which was around 500 megawatt (MW) before the cyclone struck crashed to barely 60MW on the day of the cyclone (May 16) and since then has climbed to nearly 200MW, 300MW and 400 MW on Wednesday. It is expected to reach pre-Tauktae levels by Thursday.
