Frequent power cuts after drizzle in Salcete villages

Colva: Even as pre-monsoon showers brought temporary relief from the summer heat, residents of several coastal villages in Salcete were left grappling with repeated power outages on Sunday.

Unscheduled power cuts lasting anywhere between 30 to 45 minutes disrupted normal life throughout the day. The trouble began at 6.30am when light rain was experienced across parts of Salcete. Soon after the showers, electricity supply to Cavelossim, Carmona, Orlim, and parts of Varca became erratic.

The situation worsened as the day progressed. In many areas, electricity would be restored only for brief periods of five to seven minutes before being cut off again for nearly 20 to 30 minutes. This cycle continued repeatedly till evening, severely affecting routine activities.

Assistant engineer Nicolau Moraes, who is in charge of the Carmona and Benaulim substations, said the disruption was linked to a technical issue at the Velim substation. The power station developed charging faults, forcing technical staff to undertake emergency shutdown procedures in order to carry out repair and restore stability to the network, he said.

The Velim substation is a crucial power source for the Carmona substation, which in turn supplies electricity to the coastal belt covering Cavelossim, Carmona, Orlim, and parts of Varca. Due to the fault at Velim, villages experienced repeated interruptions in electricity supply throughout the day.

Moraes said the staff was engaged to rectify the technical fault and normalise supply at the earliest.