India answers PM’S call: Lights go out, candles lit

NEW DELHI: People in several parts of the country switched off lights at their homes and lit candles and diyas – some even burst firecrackers -- on Sunday night, responding to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s appeal to show the nation’s “collective resolve and solidarity” in efforts to fight the coronavirus disease (Covid-19) outbreak.

This was the second time in a fortnight when people responded to Modi’s appeals for a show of unity, which the Prime Minister has said is crucial in times of such crisis. Normal life has been interrupted since March 25, when the country was put under a three-week lockdown to interrupt the spread of the disease that has claimed over 65,000 lives across the world.

Modi, as well as the President, Vice President and several Union ministers, took part in the 9pm event at their homes.

Union power minister RK Singh cited electricity consumption data and said the response was “huge”.

Power consumption fell by nearly 28%, according to figures given by Singh in a tweet.

Officials aware of the development said power generation was lowered to keep electricity frequency in check, a measure that helped in keeping the grid from failing.

NEW DELHI: The Union power ministry said the sharp dip in demand due to PM Modi’s call to switch off lights for nine minutes on Sunday was handled well by engineers. Power demand dropped by 32 GW, more than double of what was anticipated, but the supply went back to 110 GW “smoothly”.

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