Power Minister Atishi said several parts of East, Southeast and Central Delhi — including water treatment plants (WTPs) — were affected.
This is due to a fire at the substation of Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd in Mandola, UP.
“In this scenario, it is a matter of grave concern that the failure of the national grid caused a power outage of two hours in the national capital.
AdvertisementAtishi said the Delhi government and discoms worked in tandem with other power sources to restore power, and electricity gradually returned to different areas.
“A few weeks ago, the peak power demand made history by going above 8,000 MW but there were neither blackouts nor any major power failures… Today, massive power cuts have happened because of the national power grid system’s failure…,” she said.
Reeling under a double whammy of temperatures over 42 degrees Celsius and a water crisis, Delhi saw a massive power outage that lasted nearly two hours on Tuesday afternoon after a snag at a sub-station of the Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (PGCIL) in neighbouring Uttar Pradesh.
Power Minister Atishi said several parts of East, Southeast and Central Delhi — including water treatment plants (WTPs) — were affected. Officials said the Delhi Secretariat, the Delhi Transport Corporation headquarters at IP Estate, and other government buildings in ITO, as well as areas such as Laxmi Nagar, Sarita Vihar, Sukhdev Vihar, Ashram, Old Delhi, Shahdara, Seelampur, Trilokpuri, Patparganj, Mayur Vihar, Lajpat Nagar, Jamia, Narela, Model Town, Rohini, Gopalpur, Sabzi Mandi, Wazirpur and Kashmere Gate, were also impacted.
Addressing a press conference earlier in the day, Atishi hit out at the Centre and said “it is very worrying that the national power management system has failed today”. “There was a power outage in many parts of Delhi from 2.11 pm. This is due to a fire at the substation of Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd in Mandola, UP. Delhi receives 1,200 MW of power from this sub-station…,” she said.
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Atishi added, “I am seeking time to meet the newly appointed Power Minister Manohar Lal (Khattar) ji and the PGCIL chairman today because it is very serious… the central government runs the power transmission system of the entire country.”
“WTPs that saw power cuts are Sonia Vihar, Bhagirathi, Wazirabad and Chandrawal… and there was no power here from 2.11 pm… so, WTPs are not working… we are in touch with the PGCIL, they are working on restoration of the sub-station,” added the minister.
However, UP government officials denied there was any fire. “It was not a fire. There was a spark in one of the isolators of our system which caused the problem in the electricity supply. It happened around 2.10 pm and it was fixed by 3 pm. Supply has been restored and around 1,400 MW of electricity is being supplied to Delhi from our Mandola sub-station in Ghaziabad,” said A K Mishra, Executive Director, Northern Region-1, Power Grid.
Atishi also wrote a letter to Khattar, in which she said Delhi, besides being the national capital and housing political leaders and the entire Union government machinery, is also the home of more than 3 crore people. “In this scenario, it is a matter of grave concern that the failure of the national grid caused a power outage of two hours in the national capital. Due to the prevailing heatwave conditions, the need for uninterrupted electricity supply to Delhi is of paramount concern,” she wrote.
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Atishi said the Delhi government and discoms worked in tandem with other power sources to restore power, and electricity gradually returned to different areas.
In the city, Delhi Transco Limited maintains the high-tension transmissions and discoms maintain power distribution to consumers. “PGCIL and NTPC have a national power grid system… Delhi has very limited power production… Delhi receives electricity from different parts of the states through NTPC and PGCIL… and Delhi Transco Limited transfers the power through high-tension wires situated in different areas and finally, the consumers get electricity through our three power distribution companies,” Atishi explained.
The minister further said the Delhi government tried to provide 24-hour electricity despite peak power demand soaring above the 8,000 MW mark. “A few weeks ago, the peak power demand made history by going above 8,000 MW but there were neither blackouts nor any major power failures… Today, massive power cuts have happened because of the national power grid system’s failure…,” she said.
Meanwhile, a senior DTL official confirmed that power across the city has been restored.
