Saraswathy Amma would miss her favourite television soap while her grandson may have to wait for a repeat telecast of the most popular animation show in a leading channel for children from Monday evening onwards.
But people like Anilkumar, a government employee, believes that switching off electricity for half-an-hour is a blessing in disguise. “I know that it would be terrible to bear the scorching heat but at least that 30 minutes would give the entire family a chance to sit together and talk about something,” he said.
The Kerala State Electricity Board's decision to impose a cyclical 30-minute load-shedding from Monday (only evening hours from 6.30 p.m. to 10.30 p.m.) has evoked mixed reactions among Kochiites.
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People like Mr. Anilkumar may belong to a rare tribe but overall, the public sentiment seems to be pitted against the government for taking such a decision.
“It's a clear case of mismanagement. The power crisis was not something that happened just a few days back. The authorities should have done something earlier itself to find an alternative,” said Suresh Varma, a business executive.
Jyothi Pillai, a management student, blamed the politicians for having the least concern for the public.
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“I may not be correct but I strongly feel that the government was waiting for the results of the Piravom bypoll to announce the load-shedding. The politicians would not feel the heat, as they all live in government buildings that have the state-of-the-art invertors,” she said.
A store owner in the city, who sells inverters, said that sales have started picking up. “Business always gets a boost in summer.
Inquiries have gone up, with the government announcing a 30-minute load-shedding from Monday. The general perception is that the power cut is here to stay for long,” he said.