Power outage complaints rise amid monsoon arrival

Pune: The first two days of monsoon in the city saw a quick rise in individual complaints about power outages in several areas.Officials of the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) said residents from the areas of Mohammadwadi, Vishrantwadi, and Ravet, among others, reported having many power-related problems.Regarding the rise in power outage incidents during the monsoon, an official said, “One of the main reasons for outages is road digging. Because of this, underground power cables can catch moisture. Therefore, the power supply is interrupted. Fault detection in underground cables is done with the help of cable testing vans. Excavation, removal of moisture from the cable, jointing, etc., are required at the place of defect, which can take a lot of time.”The official added a few other causes of power outages, include trees falling on the power lines, large branches breaking, lightning strikes or power surges.Water enters the system through the feeder pillar and ring main unit. Due to this, the power supply is interrupted. The official said consumers should register their complaints on toll-free numbers 1912 or 1800-212-3435 or 1800-233-3435.200m power line to go underground in Bhusari colonyOn Saturday, a dry tree branch fell on a 22 KV Saudamini power line in Bhusari Colony, Kothrud, at 7.20pm. The branch caught fire due to a short circuit.The employees of state power utility immediately went to the spot and removed the fallen branch. The officials restored the power supply at 8 pm.As a permanent solution to this, about 200m of the power line will be laid underground on priority.