As winter is yet to arrive, the electricity has started vanishing, particularly in rural areas of Jammu and Kashmir despite the fact that the authorities, the other day had made a big claim that power scenario this winter would be better than the previous winter. With a slight snowfall in upper reaches of Kashmir, frequent power cuts all over the Valley have become a norm. Reports pouring in from length and breadth of Kashmir Valley suggest that people are suffering as for as the electric power supply is concerned. While people have no great hopes regarding the power supply during winters, that they would suffer in the fall too, has left them perplexed.
Though the situation in Srinagar and other major towns is, to some extent, acceptable, the rural areas present a pathic picture. In most of the villages, electricity vanishes for hours together and mind it is not freezing Chillai Kalan but the month of October. People are genuinely upset wondering why no explanations are being provided to them about the real status of electric power supply.
It was expected of the administration to rise up to the demands of the people by ensuring them all basic and effective amenities particularly the proper power supply but nothing of the sort is witnessed on the ground. Instead of addressing the issue and coming up with some reasonable explanation regarding the power pangs, the concerned authorities are busy accusing the people of power theft. Yes, one may not dispute that there are some people indulging in power theft but does that give a license to the concerned agency to punish the entire populace. And for that matter, who is responsible to check power theft? Not the common consumers but those who are being paid to do so. If still power theft takes place, why not to take action against those who are supposed to stop such thefts instead of punishing the public by erratic power cuts.
Instead of trying to silence the people by drumming up ‘power theft’, the authorities should seriously look into the matter and try to fix it. Reports suggest that the revenue collection from consumers by the concerned department has improved very much and this improvement should have reflected somewhere in the supply of power to the consumers. But it has not. Fact of the matter is people, not only in rural areas, but in Srinagar and other major towns too are facing unannounced power cuts. It is true that during winters there emerges a huge gap between supply and demand and that current demand in Kashmir exceeds 2200 MW while as the allocation remains only 1500 MW, but it is the responsibility of the government to do away with this gap. During elections, tall claims were made about providing limited units of free electricity and now, while people are being made to pay through their noses, the thing that was promised “FREE’ is missing from villages as well as towns.