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Anti-KESCo stirs on the rise
ANTI-KESCO DEMONSTRATIONS have once again taken centrestage over other activities in the city. In the past one-week, traders staged demonstrations many times protesting against the power cuts in commercial areas of the city.
ANTI-KESCO DEMONSTRATIONS have once again taken centrestage over other activities in the city.
In the past one-week, traders staged demonstrations many times protesting against the power cuts in commercial areas of the city.
People, especially traders, are up in arms against the worsening power situation in the city. Long hours of power cuts, which varies between 14-16 hours, has hit the business community hard.
Routine rostering hours start from 7.30 am and continue up to 2.30 pm. During this phase, power supply in the entire city, including all commercial areas is snapped. During peak evening hours, power supply to commercial areas is snapped in phases. Apart from this, night rostering starts from 2 am and continues till 5 am. Time and again, the Kanpur Udyog Vyapar Mandal has demanded rostering-free supply during peak commercial hours in the evening.
But all pleas of the Vyapar Mandal have failed to evoke any response from the KESCo management. Members of the Vyapar Mandal also had a tiff with the general manager of KESCo on Thursday when their delegation went to submit a memorandum demanding regular power supply during peak commercial hours.
General secretary of the Vyapar Mandal Gyanesh Mishra said, “Power supply of commercial areas of the city is being snapped during peak evening hours. This has been resulting in financial loss to traders.”
Mishra added that due to the sultry weather people avoid shopping in the afternoon. But evening power cuts was also deterring them from venturing out.
Trader leaders of the P Road Traders’ Association Mahesh Meghani also flayed the KESCo management for power cuts in commercial areas in the evening.
“Power cut in commercial areas of the city in evening is mainly due to overloading and tripping and not due to rostering,” Meghani said.
He said KESCo officials could easily do away with this problem, but no one was interested in taking up the issue.
However, KESCo officials refused to own up the responsibility for power cuts in commercial areas of the city. A senior KESCo official accused traders for power cuts in commercial areas.
“It’s due to illegal connections in commercial areas that their power supply is snapped in the evening due to excess load,” the official added.
