The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Protests on the rise in Karur as load shedding extends

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Oct 08, 2008
ePaper | Mobile/PDA Version

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Protests on the rise in Karur as load shedding extends

Staff Reporter

Tamil Nadu Electricity Board officials not adhering to load shedding schedule, allege farmers in Cauvery-irrigated areas

— file Photo: M. Srinath

HELL HATH NO FURY: Villagers staging road roko in Thanjavur district, demanding proper electricity supply.

KARUR: Continued scheduled and unannounced load sheddings are attracting a lot of flak from people in Karur district. Reports of demonstrations against load shedding by various groups are increasing by the day.

While it was announced that the Tamil Nadu Electricity Board (TNEB) would resort to five hours of load shedding a day in the district, in reality it is close to seven hours a day.

Several areas of Karur town and district went without power for over seven hours on Tuesday. The duration of power cuts were not as per the announced schedule and that put the people to increased trouble.

As usual, industries and farmers had to bear the brunt while the women who had to prepare the children and office-goers to school and work found it immensely difficult to cope with theload shedding in the morning.

Residents also complain about extended load shedding in the dead of the night. From one hour in the past few weeks to two hours on the trot, now the power supply situation has only worsened and is adding to the woes, complain public.

As the power supply situation gradually worsens, the protest by the groups is proportionally getting shriller. Demonstrations against the power crisis have been held in all corners of the district. Reports of demonstrations have come in from Kulithalai, Thogamalai, Krishnarayapuram, Karur town, K. Paramathi, Aravakurichi and Velayuthampalayam.

The worst hit are farmers and industrial unit owners in the district. In the rural areas, farmers are organising demonstrations. Farmers’ organisations organised a protest in front of the Kavalkaranpatti power substation and presented a memorandum to the officials there demanding proper and prior information on the load shedding. The farmers claimed that they were finding it difficult to irrigate their fields and it was critical especially when the agriculture operations were picking up in the Cauvery-irrigated areas of Nangavaram, Nachalur, etc. They said that contrary to the State Government’s assurance, uninterrupted power supply for six hours in the day and eight hours in the night was not being adhered to by the officials. The local AIADMK unit has been organising street-corner meetings and speakers at the meetings are highlighting the worsening power supply situation.

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Tamil Nadu