BENGALURU : The dreaded power cuts are back. As the season has started to change, most Bengalureans are experiencing power cuts for varied durations in the day and night. While some said there would be a power cut each time it starts to rain, others said that it was an annual affair during February and March, with the onset of summer, as the energy department was keen on saving power for the dry days ahead.
However, these power cuts have started to affect online classes for children, the schedule of those working from home and the morning schedules of those who have started their office routine. The social media accounts of Bangalore Electricity Supply Corporation Limited (Bescom) are flooded with complaints of power interruptions from citizens across the city.
“The power cuts have started affecting my children’s online classes. I complained to Bescom but little has been done because each time the power comes back, it goes off after a while,” complained Sunitha L, a resident of Vijayanagar. Educational institutions have also complained to Bescom, pointing out that practical classes and laboratories are getting affected due to the outages.
Pushpa P, another resident, said that due to the sudden power cuts, the UPS was not getting charged, due to which her office work gets affected. “The areas which are not even listed out by Bescom are experiencing power cuts. It is only February. Monsoon had been bountiful, so there should have been sufficient hydro energy stored. Seems like the energy department has already started its preparation for summer,” she added.
However, Bescom ruled out any such issues. Bescom director technical Sreerame Gowda said that the work on shifting all overhead lines underground was going on. “It is a year-long exercise and to ensure that there are no untoward cases, power supply is cut off while shifting utilities.
The work is being undertaken across Bescom limits and this will also be a part of the capacity enhancement exercise. There is no dearth of power. Apart from this Karnataka Power Transmission Corporation is also undertaking maintenance work, due to which there are power cuts,” he said.