Powercuts continue as discoms struggle with high demand

Power Secretary Rajendra Kumar said,“I have advised the discoms to arrange for five per cent more power than the demand we estimate for the next day.”

As of now though,the situation remains dismal. Paschim Vihar’s Ambika Vihar,supplied by the Discom BSES,has been bearing the brunt every day for the past one week.

“We have no power for almost six hours every day. Our colony is near Nangloi Jat,which BSES has identified as a high power theft area. Because both Ambika Vihar and Nangloi Jat are supplied by the same feeder,we have to put up load shedding more frequently than other areas in the city,” said an exasperated Rohini Shukla,who has spent quite some time looking into the reasons for the consistent power cuts.

Many areas such as Janakpuri and South Extension face extensive power cuts at night. “Last night,power was cut off at 9.30 pm and restored only at 2 am. I called the BSES call centre,which is not even a toll-free number. First I had to be on hold for half-an-hour and then they gave me the standard excuse on low frequency and how power would be restored in half an hour. It took two hours,” said Deepti Trehan,a resident of Janakpuri’s C4F block.

The BSES for its part continues to maintain that the powercuts have nothing to do with shortage.

“Two of the main problems for the powercuts is the low frequency in the Northern grid and the overdrawal of power by the Northern states particularly during the night hours,because it is harvesting season in many of these states,” an official said on the condition of anonymity.

Power Secretary Rajendra Kumar said,“The problem occurs primarily during peak hours when all states begin overdrawing at the same time.”

This leads to the frequency dipping in the grid and hence powercuts are enforced to protect the grid from damage.

“We are confident the situation will improve within the next two to three days,” Kumar said.