Himachal rain fury: No power, water in parts of Kasauli as Solan grid fails

The Kasauli residents have been without electricity for the past four days. Many residents said that their inverters got discharged and WiFi connections along with other adequate communication systems too disrupted which affected work from home for many.

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Mandi: Vehicles get buried under the debris after flood following heavy monsoon rains, in Mandi, Tuesday, July 11, 2023. (PTI Photo)

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Mandi: Devotees remove silt from the Panchvaktra Temple after the flood following recent heavy monsoon rains, in Mandi, Tuesday, July 11, 2023. (PTI Photo)

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Kullu: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu dines at a flood-relief camp, in Kullu, Tuesday, July 11, 2023. (PTI Photo)

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Kullu: A bridge that got damaged due to flood following heavy monsoon rains, in Kullu, Wednesday, July 12, 2023. (PTI Photo)

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Manali: Locals on a road damaged after heavy monsoon rains, in Manali, Wednesday, July 12, 2023. (PTI Photo)

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Manali: Himachal Pradesh Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu visits flood-affected areas, in Manali, Wednesday, July 12, 2023. (PTI Photo)

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Mandi: A man walks with his horse as monsoon clouds hover in the sky, in Mandi, Wednesday, July 12, 2023. (PTI Photo)

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Kullu: A truck after it got swept away in floodwater following heavy monsoon rains, in Kullu, Wednesday, July 12, 2023. (PTI Photo)

Solan Deputy Commissioner Manmohan Sharma told The Indian Express that due to the failure of power grid, electricity supply has been disrupted. “I agree this is causing inconvenience to residents as they aren’t even able to charge their necessary appliances. I have spoken to the superintendent engineer of the electricity department and have directed him to get power restored at the earliest. Priority would be given to emergency areas like hospitals.”

Kasauli Sub-Divisional Magistrate Gaurav Mahajan said that the unstoppable rains have triggered fresh landslides which have further led to more road cave-ins.

“Our teams are on the job. As we are hoping the water to recede, teams have been tasked to not just repair the stretches of roads that have caved in but also restore the electricity by working on the grid failure,” he said, adding that many electricity poles have also fallen.

Meanwhile, the electricity officials at the local complaint centre at Kasauli have cited the shortage of hands staff as another reason for the late restoration of power.

“We are only four of us. We can’t do anything till we have more staff coming in from Solan,” said an official of the local electricity complaint centre.

Kasuli residents like Suraj Kumar are blaming the Solan administration for its “reluctant and insensitive attitude” towards the issue plaguing the hill station. “There has been no electricity and water supply in major parts of Kasauli for the past four days. Our inverters have given up; elderly people and children are suffering in complete darkness with nature showing its wrath on one hand and the administration sleeping on the matter on the other hand,” he told The Indian Express.

Residents stated that most electrical appliances have gone dead without power.

“The mobile phones are dead, the internet is gone, and taps are running dry due to no electricity. Hundreds of families in Kasauli are suffering as food stored in refrigerators is getting stale. Even the basic facilities that a citizen expects are not being made available. Where do we go, whom we should we approach for help,” said Meera Rani, another local resident said.

Power supply in many parts of the district was restored late on Tuesday night. But some parts of Kasauli are still waiting for respite.

At least 31 people died in Himachal Pradesh in rain-related incidents in the past three days, the police said on Tuesday.