Unscheduled power cuts throw life out of gear

Hyderabad: With summer still weeks away, the city is already getting a taste of the days to come with the first major thermal power station breakdown of the season.  Out of 14 to 16 waking hours in a day, citizens are facing hours of unannounced power cuts, most of which are during the few hours when they are home, before heading to work or after coming back.

In the last two days, several areas in the twin cities have been subjected to cuts of up to four hours at a go, sometimes totaling to six hours a day. While the Central discom has announced two hour "scheduled" cuts, most areas in the city are experiencing three to five hours of unscheduled cuts.  With the power cuts beginning at 6 am in several areas, the uncertainty is leading to problems as people have been planning their days as per the power cut timings.

Power officials say that loss of 500 MW due to the breakdown of the Bhopallpalli Thermal Power Station is the reason for the additional cuts, which are temporary. "We have lost 500 MW from Bhopallpalli Thermal Power Station due to burning of the boiler tube. We are already working on it and are hopeful of getting it operational in 24 hours," said chairman and managing director of APGenco K. Vijayanand.

In several areas, official cuts have been increased to three hours without citizens being informed. In Marredpally, Mahindra Hills and Sainikpuri etc. the cuts have shot up to three hours or more.

"Announced power cuts are imposed in our area from 6 am to 7 am and from 10 am to 11 am. But for a week now, the 10 am cut is extending up to 1 pm, at times 2 pm. Also there are separate half an hour to one hour cuts," said Venkat Rao of Madhavapuri Hills.