VIJAYAWADA
: While doctors, paramedical staff, police and sanitation workers are working tirelessly in this moment of crisis, another group which is quietly but consistently working away is the
electricity
staff. Energy secretary Nagulapalli Srikant, in a statement on Sunday, said that electricity employees are being applauded by all sections of society for their service.
Appreciating efforts of ground-level staff who are ensuring uninterrupted power supply at hospitals, Srikant said that their services will be recognised by the government.
Immediately after the lockdown was announced, the energy department had sounded high alert and special teams were formed to check power outages. A centralised call centre has been established to monitor power supply.
Thousands of engineers have been deployed on the ground to restore power supply in case there is a breakdown.
Meanwhile, with the onset of summer, sudden winds, rain and gale, the electricity department is facing several challenges. There have been incidents of transformer blasts, conductor snaps and poles being uprooted. Srikant said that ground-level employees have immediately risen to the occasion and restored power supply within the shortest possible time span.
K Venkateswara Rao, JMD vigilance, APTransco said a separate control room has been set up to deal with issues faced by electricity employees and to coordinate with cops.