While in Bangalore, I did hear about the electricity crunch in Maharashtra and the daily load shedding blackouts paralysing life. But I realised the intensity of this grim situation on my first day at home in Aurangabad. There is five hours power cut everyday staggered in 2 slots of 2.5 hours each. Worse there are no fixed time slots for it. The only saving grace is that there is no blackout at night. After spending 3 years in salubrious, cool and comfy weather of Bangalore, the hot and dray summer at home is driving me crazy. Whenever there is power, everyone is waiting for the power cut to strike and whenever there is power cut, everyone is left waiting for the electricity. Fanning myself with the newspaper to dry me sweat, while complaining about this daily misery has become my major activity of the day. If you go out in market, banks, offices etc. during day time, the irritating sound of gen-sets coughing smoke and the humming of inverters will catch your attention immediately.
As always, there is complete apathy from the government on this issue.
The beleaguered state owned electricity board plagued by corruption, inefficiency, power thefts, outdated machinery and lack of funds has clearly failed to deliver even after its trifurcation. The rural areas have been worst affected by this power crunch. Eight to ten hours of load shedding is a routine affair in villages. Enraged villagers have attacked electricity board offices and beaten up its staff on several occasions.
It’s tragic to see the dark future of this once prosperous state. Meanwhile I continue to write this blog on battery backup.
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