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U.P. residents battling power outages due to poor distribution infra
If the power scenario is this dire in Lucknow, one can only imagine the state of other districts, said locals.
LUCKNOW In the midst of scorching June heat, residents of several districts -- including Lucknow -- are battling power outages due to its poor distribution infrastructure. The situation is so dire that over 50 demonstrations were staged outside substations in Lucknow alone. People were protesting against outages during night hours.
Reportedly, more than 150 power outages are reported every day in the state capital alone. If the power scenario is this dire in Lucknow, one can only imagine the state of other districts, said locals.
Why distribution is not improved?
Avadhesh Kumar Varma, chairman of Uttar Pradesh Rajya Vidyut Upbhokta Parishad, said, “We know the power demand is going to increase by 10-to-20% every year. The demand rises to the peak during May, June, July, August, and September. Last year, the demand sky-rocketed at 26,589 MW in September but this year, the record of maximum demand has been broken in June itself. On Sunday, the demand was recorded at 26,672 MW.”
He added, “Despite being aware of the trend of increasing demand, the distribution infrastructure is not improved. Every time, the minister says that there is no shortage of power supply but what’s the point of excess power supply, if we can’t supply it to the consumers of the state? When we know about the trend of increase in power demand then why can’t we prepare infrastructure for the supply of 35,000 MW for the state and keep on gradually increasing it so that we can make our state a tripping zone?”
Not only this, more than 700 transformers have been damaged during the last two months in Lucknow alone indicating poor quality transformers and increasing load on them. Across the state more than 400 transformers are getting damaged daily, said a highly placed UPPCL official.
Power infrastructure calls for attention
The power infrastructure of the state capital needs immediate attention as presently, there are more than 12 lakh power consumers in the state capital and their sanction load is known to LESA but almost all the 250 substations are overloaded due to the growing demand. Many areas of the city are facing power outages because of undeclared power rostering.
What do residents say?
Shivani Sharma, a resident of Mayur Vihar on Indira Nagar Picnic Spot Road, said, “It’s irritating when you get the power supply for ten minutes followed by a power outage of one hour. It’s hard to sleep when there is a power outage during the night.”
Similarly, Nikhil Chaturvedi, a resident of Patel Nagar, Alambagh, said, “UPPCL engineers don’t pick up the phone, especially during night hours. Also, the substation staff doesn’t give accurate information, so, we have to bear all the power outages during the night.”
Official explanation
Chief engineer, LESA, Cis Gomti, Sanjay Jain, said, “In June, the power demand was maximum on June 10 at 1,539 MW. In comparison, the maximum demand in June 2020 was 1,247 MW... LESA is trying to improve the power supply by increasing the capacity of transformers, changing the power lines, and setting up new substations. We have a plan to set up at least 30 more substations in different areas of the city, so, that problem of increasing load and overheating transformers is solved till next year.”
Admitting the high number of power outages and demonstrations in the city, he said, “LESA is doing its best with limited staff and resources, I have directed all the Junior Engineers (JEs), Assistant Engineers (AEs), and Senior Engineers (SEs) to do night patrolling in their respective areas not only to catch power theft but also to ensure uninterrupted power supply. We know overheating of transformers and damaging of jumpers takes place due to increased load but infrastructure is getting improved with each passing day.”
Minister’s counter
State minister of energy, AK Sharma, said, “Under the Saubhagya Yojana, we are giving electricity connections to 62.18 lakh houses in every remote area of state. Now, our next target would be to improve the power infrastructure. Centre has already given ₹6,000 crore for the same, and tenders for improving the power infrastructure have already been floated. Things are moving fast. Soon, power outages would be a thing of the past. Besides this, we are concentrating on getting high-quality transformers so that they don’t get damaged soon.”
He said, “Not only that we will also ensure that all the transformers are regularly maintained. We also want to follow the rule of not overloading and transformer beyond 80% of its capacity... Action would be taken against the officials who don’t attend to phone calls of consumers or attend to each complain as soon as possible.”
