No power cuts during Pujas,says CESC

“Last week,there were power cuts since we were repairing many distribution points in the city,” said a CESC official. Kumartuli,Moulali and Esplanade have distribution points that need to be upgraded,since they supply the lines to many of the big pandals. “The monsoon led to a delay in the completion of repair work,” the official added.

The CESC supplies power to around 5,000 big and small pandals in Kolkata and Howrah. Sources at the CESC said the demand for power usually peaks on Panchami and Shasthi,since factories,offices and malls are still open and they have to supply power to them apart from pandals,which lead to a peak in the demand.

“But from Saptami,as schools,colleges and offices start shutting down,the demand drops and we are able to meet the supply during the rest of the Pujas,” said the CESC official.

Till last week,the state had been reeling under severe power shortage,since many of the power plants under West Bengal Power Development Corporation Limited (WBPDCL) could not operate well due to coal shortage.

The units at Kolaghat,Bakreswar and Sagardighi were performing below their level,which had led to the government buying power from several other agencies,which resulted in widespread power cuts in the city and outskirts. But CESC officials said with matters improving,they were hoping to meet the demand completely this weekend. Last year,the peak-hour demand during Pujas was around 1,450 MW and sources at CESC said they were expecting it to be 1,550-60 MW this year.

Centre warns of terror attack on trains
Acting on a warning issued by the Centre that there could be terrorist attacks on trains during Pujas,the state government is taking measures to ensure the safety of railway passengers. “I had a discussion with the Additional Director General,Railway Police,Dilip Mitra,on the issue and we have told him to take all measures,” said chief secretary Asok Mohan Chakrabarti on Monday. All measures are being taken for passenger safety. “There will be adequate deployment of police force at railway stations and inside trains,” said Mitra. “There will be strict vigil on railway tracks too. We request people not to panic and keep their eyes and ears open.” The chief secretary also said the government had issued advisories to Puja organisers to ensure safety of the revellers.