POWER CUTS COMPOUND WOES
Battling blazing sun, people pay price of poll promises, cry out for early resolution
Abundant coal, large rail network, unutilised capacity in thermal plants. Yet, there is acute power shortage. Modi government cannot be blamed. It is because of 60 years of Congress rule! There is no incompetence in the Ministries of Coal, Railway or Power. The blame lies with past Congress ministers of the said departments! The government has found the perfect solution: cancel passenger trains and run coal rakes! Modi hai, mumkin hai. —P CHIDAMBARAM, Congress leader
Power outages amid scorching heat have made people’s lives miserable in several states. A wheat businessman from Uttar Pradesh’s Kanpur complained about power cuts in the city and said it is leading to financial losses. “We have a wheat chakki (grinder). There are frequent power cuts because of which our electricity bill rises. When we restart our machine after the power is back, the meter reading increases. The frequent power cuts have caused us losses. The government should announce the timings of the power cuts. We are small businessmen. This problem causes us a lot of problems,” a local businessman told ANI.
“There are untimely and frequent power cuts. It is causing small shopkeepers a lot of problems,” another shopkeeper said.
Another resident said there is a water problem because of the power cuts. “We are facing a lot of problems because of the power cuts. There is a water problem because of power cuts. The children face problems. Summer is at its peak, but there are frequent power cuts,” he said.
An office-goer person narrated his plight and said that he faces problems in taking a peaceful sleep at night due to power cuts after hard work during the day. “There are a lot of problems. We do our duty and when we come to fill water here, there is no electricity. We don’t get sleep at night at all. We are asked to pay the full bill, but full electricity is not provided,” he said.
Residents of Jharkhand’s Ranchi also are suffering due to frequent power cuts.
Detailing her problems, homemaker Pushpa Sinha said they sit on the terrace at night to find some relief from the warm weather as there are power cuts. “There are a lot of power cuts. It is causing a lot of problems for women. The food items in the refrigerator are getting spoiled. Children are facing problems because of the cuts. There are water problems as well. At times, we sit on the terrace at night to feel better, but even the floor of the terrace is warm because of the heat throughout the day,” she said.
Ashok Chourasia, a local resident said that the government promised zero power cuts, however, they are facing 100 per cent power cuts. “The government said there will be zero power cut, but this is a 100 per cent power cut. We have gone back to the days when there was no electricity in our houses. Due to frequent power cuts, there is no water. It has become difficult to survive in this scorching heat without power supply," he said.
Punjab, where the Aam Aadmi Party recently came to power with a thumping majority promising free electricity to the residents, is also facing power cuts. The residents showed discontent with the government and urged to provide electricity. “The Bhagwant Mann government had promised 24-hour electricity. I saw Kejriwal’s statement in which he said 24-hour electricity will be given after four years. If they had no roadmap, why did they fool the people of Punjab? There are power cuts for up to 9 hours. I request the government to give us only electricity. Don’t make Punjab Delhi. Let Punjab be Punjab.”