Hyderabad still powerless at night

Hyderabad: Though the power demand in the state has come down with the agricultural load easing off and the deficit down from 40 MU two weeks back to 10 to 15 MU currently, power cuts and disruptions, especially at night, continue to haunt parts of the city. Officials say that the power cuts are occasional and add that it is ‘power disruption’ rather than cuts that citizens are complaining about.

Citizens complain of frequent 10-20 minutes cuts round the clock. Areas like Sainikpuri, Malkajgiri, Regimental Bazaar, Chandanagar, Gachibowli, Charminar and Gowliguda are among the ones facing power disruptions. Officials, meanwhile, blame sudden load fluctuations at night for increased snapping of transmission lines. As per figures provided by the Southern Region Load Dispatch Centre on June 4, the power deficit in Andhra Pradesh was 18 MU, while it was 3 MU in Telangana. The deficit in the combined state in the last week in May, meanwhile, hovered around 35 to 40 MU per day.

The current deficit of less than 20 mu is not big enough to impact the domestic sector, but it is in fact the load increase, especially at night, when people switch on air conditioners, that results in this disruptions. “Over the last one year, problems arising due to load fluctuations have increased substantially. These disruptions are mostly due to the transformers and feeders being unable to take the increased loads in several residential areas as they were meant for smaller loads. The problem is not there in newly developing areas as the transformers there are being installed as per accurate demand,” said a senior official from Southern Telangana Distribution Company.