Power crisis continues in Pune’s IT corridor

While electricity was restored to most residential areas by early Monday morning, several IT firms across Pune’s technology hub are still receiving supply in five-hour staggered cycles and MSETCL officials claiming that power supply will be restored not before Wednesday.

PUNE: A major power outage triggered by a fault in Maharashtra State Electricity Transmission Company Ltd (MSETCL’s) 220 kV Infosys–Pegasus underground cable near Hinjewadi has continued to affect power supply to one of the largest IT corridors of India with over 52,000 MSEDCL consumers affected.

While electricity was restored to most residential areas by early Monday morning, several IT firms across Pune’s technology hub are still receiving supply in five-hour staggered cycles and MSETCL officials claiming that power supply will be restored not before Wednesday.    (HT)

While electricity was restored to most residential areas by early Monday morning, several IT firms across Pune’s technology hub are still receiving supply in five-hour staggered cycles and MSETCL officials claiming that power supply will be restored not before Wednesday.

The Maharashtra State Electricity Transmission Company Ltd (MSETCL) has said that full restoration of power may not be possible before Wednesday evening, prompting calls for companies to allow work-from-home for their employees. Some firms permitted remote work on Monday, while the traffic police also appealed to companies to adopt the same approach over the next three days to ease congestion and support repair efforts.

“This is the first time we’ve faced such an incident on this route. The 220 kV cable at the substation is damaged. It will take at least three days to complete repairs and fully restore the supply by Wednesday evening,” said Anil Kolap, Chief Engineer, MSETCL.

The fault occurred around 2:10 pm on Sunday, shortly after MSEDCL resumed operations following a scheduled maintenance shutdown between 11 am and 1 pm. It impacted both domestic (low voltage) and high-tension (HT) industrial consumers, including firms operating from Hinjewadi Phase 3 MIDC, Wipro Circle, and surrounding areas outside the MIDC zone. In total, 25 feeder lines were disrupted, affecting 91 HT and more than 52,000 LT consumers across the Mulshi and Pimpri divisions.

MSEDCL launched a large-scale restoration operation, rerouting supply through alternate lines. Power was restored to 2,000 consumers by 10 pm on Sunday, with full restoration for low-voltage users completed by 4 am on Monday. Despite progress, industrial zones continue to face a phased power supply.

However, industrial areas remain under load management. “Despite efforts, power supply to several HT industrial customers—including TCS, Tech Mahindra, IBM, Wipro, Cognizant, and others—remains restricted. Mahavitaran has implemented a five-hour cycle to manage power delivery to these units until full load is restored,” a senior MSETCL official said.

Sunil Kakade, Chief Engineer, MSEDCL Pune circle, said efforts were taken on a war footing to minimise disruption. “Our senior officials and I worked around the clock to avoid a prolonged outage. The fault was in MSETCL’s incoming supply line to us, and we restored power through alternate networks.”

Sachin Salkar, head of transport operations at the Hinjewadi Industrial Association, said the disruption has impacted companies located from Wipro Circle to Quadron Circle, Raisoni Tech Park and nearby firms operating outside the MIDC area. “We have advised companies to permit work from home. The Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic) has also issued an advisory, asking firms to follow this approach and, if unavoidable, to use alternate routes for senior staff commuting to offices,” he said.

Pavanjit Mane, president of the Forum for IT Employees (FITE), said the response from companies has been mixed.

“Around two lakh employees work in Phases 2 and 3 of Hinjewadi. Only Wipro has formally allowed WFH. Others have not yet responded. We have requested MP Supriya Sule to take up the matter with authorities, as supply may not be fully restored until July 9,” he said.

The key areas affected in the Mulshi division are Xrbia Society, Kolte Patil Township, Marunji, Maan, Jambe, Mere, and Dattawadi, while in the Pimpri section, Hinjewadi MIDC, IT Park, Raisoni Park, and localities near Dohler Company and Wipro Circle remain affected.

Mahavitaran has assured that efforts are underway to stabilise industrial supply as quickly as possible, with full restoration expected by Thursday.