If you have been puzzled by the erratic nature of the two-hour load shedding over the past couple of days, the answer is pretty simple.
While Tamil Nadu Generation and Distribution Corporation (Tangedco) has temporarily suspended power cuts in most parts of the city, it is still carried out unofficially in areas where consumption is very high, said sources. The suspension of cuts began after power generation from wind picked up.
Residents had been puzzled at the way load shedding was being enforced in the city, with only some areas continuing to bear the brunt. Since last week, power generation from wind had reached 3,000 megawatts a day. This has increased the total power generation in the State to nearly 12,000 MW, the total capacity being around 12,500 MW. Hence, power cuts were suspended in most areas of the city. “The two-hour load shedding helps save nearly 400 MW a day,” said a Tangedco staffer.
However, residents in some part of the city did not benefit from this move. “In Mylapore, a two-hour load shedding was in effect between noon and 2 p.m. on both Wednesday and Thursday. But, my cousin, who lives in Thoraipakkam, did not face any outage,” said S. Chandrasekhar, a resident of Balakrishna Street in Mylapore.
Similarly, parts of Pondy Bazaar and T. Nagar too went without power. “On Sunday and Monday, we did not have any load shedding. It resumed on Tuesday. But, my colleagues who live in M.K.B. Nagar and Kodungaiyur did not have any cuts,” said S. Kumaravel, a resident of Raja Street in Pondy Bazaar. In areas such as Rameshwaram Street and Murugesan Street in T. Nagar, residents did not get any relief from power cuts for even a single day.
Tangedco officials said that “localities such as T. Nagar, Purasaiwalkam, Broadway and some parts of Mylapore consume high amounts of electricity due to the presence of commercial complexes. Hence, load shedding is enforced occasionally.”
While the absence of power cuts may have brought some relief, other power supply-related problems such as low voltage and unscheduled power cuts continued to plague residents. “For the past three days, the voltage has been really low. Only a zero watts bulb illuminates the room now,” said S. Subha, a resident of Dr. Ranga Road in Alwarpet. A similar situation prevails in Thoraipakkam.
For residents of Mangalapuram in Chetpet, unscheduled power cuts have been the norm since April. “When we complain, Tangedco officials sort it out somehow only for the problem to recur in a day’s time,” said a resident of 8 street in Mangalapuram.
On Thursday, areas on the Old Mahabalipuram Road and East Coast Road faced power cuts that lasted for many hours following a fire in the Perungudi sub-station due to over-loading.
