Transmission work leads to 10hr power crisis in Ghaziabad

GHAZIABAD: Thousands of people living in the densely populated trans-Hindon region of Ghaziabad stewed in intense heat and unusually high humidity on Tuesday with no power supply for most of the morning and afternoon.
Power department officials, however, said they had informed the residents about the pre-scheduled power crisis via media reports. Officials said they are in the process of installing new transformers in Muradnagar and Sahibabad, which led to the crisis.
Several RWAs, meanwhile, complained that they were not notified about the pre-scheduled outages or rostering.
A resident of Shipra Riviera in Indirapuram said outages added up to about eight hours till evening. "Power was switched off twice, for about four hours in the morning and another four hours in the afternoon. Besides having to rely entirely on back-up, these are crucial hours for water supply. No family in our society could draw water in the morning or the afternoon," he said.
"If this happens for even one more day, there will be a water crisis here. If the power cuts were planned, they should have been rostered in a way that they don't disrupt water supply. It shows an appalling lack of concern for the basic needs of residents," he added.
"The power cuts have been rampant since last one week, but the problem became chronic since the last two days," said Mohit Saxena, secretary of Apartment Owners Association, Ghaziabad.
Tejinder Pal Tyagi, chairman of RWA Federation Ghaziabad (RWAFG), said the residents were not informed about the rostering. "We could have made alternative arrangements if we were informed about the pre-scheduled power cut, which extended to almost 10 hours since the last two days," he added.
When contacted, AK Gupta, the chief engineer of Paschimanchal Vidyut Vitaran Nigam Limited (PVVNL), Ghaziabad, said that information on power cuts was let out via the media on May 8 and 9.
"The problem escalated in the last couple of days due to major transmission work in Muradnagar and Sahibabad. New transformers of 400 KVA in Muradnagar, along with 220 KVA and 132 KVA transformers in Sahibabad, are being installed, which have led to major power crisis," he said.
He added, "The situation will improve by Thursday. 90% of the transmission work will be over by May 31 and by June 15, we will be ready to handle the power situation."