Is there a Pragmatic Solution to Ukhrul Power Woes?
Source: Chronicle News Service / R Lester Mamang

Ukhrul, September 01 2023: Power cuts have been a big bugbear in Ukhrul town, more so in recent times with the public losing count of daily interruptions - that may stretch from a few minutes to some hours or for the rest of the day.

All these happen in the absence of any official load-shedding (as is reliably learnt there is no such exercise here), with the exception of occasional technical glitches necessitating a power shutdown.

A single disruption triggered by technical failures may take several days for the authorities concerned to restore power supply, especially when poles are uprooted by storms or high tension (HT) wires get snapped or are blown down by the wind or an accidental tripping occurs.

While the inclement weather often hampers restoration works, what adds to the problem is the lack of a bricks-and-mortar office of the Manipur State Power Corporation Ltd (MSPCL), a transmission section of the state-owned power corporation, in Ukhrul town which has a sizeable number of 10,000-plus registered power consumers covered under the Prepaid Metering System.

An official in the MSPCL - which is largely concerned with transmission of the current it receives from 132 KV Yaingangpokpi sub-station -confirmed that at present the staffers don't have an office in Ukhrul town.

"But our staffers are stationed at the Hundung Cement Factory sub-station and other sub-stations to make sure current is availability," he said.

The Hundung sub-station also feeds current to other smaller 33KV sub-stations in the district.

"Any faults that crop up at these places fall within our jurisdiction," the official said.

On the other hand, the Manipur State Power Distribution Corporation Ltd.

(MSPDCL), Ukhrul Division, the corporation's other section, deals with distribution or supply of power to households/consumers as well as maintenance of various transformers and lines beyond the Hundung sub-station.

So, the MSPDCL has no business whatsoever every time that a power cut occurs due to a technical snag in the transmission system.

"We have to wait for the MSPCL to fix it," said an official source in the MSPDCL.

This is until an MSPCL team arrives from Imphal, the state's capital city, and 84 km from Ukhrul town.

It normally takes a good three hours to reach here - but more, during wet seasons due to deplorable roads.

Instances of power interruption being experienced by the town residents on a daily basis have apparently got worse from a few to multiple times over the last many months.

There is an undercurrent running high among the public that power shutdowns, for the most part, might have been executed just to get to the consumers who are left fuming and cursing their fate when the current goes off and on repeatedly.

Many business operators who solely depend on power have blamed power cuts for upsetting their apple cart.

"There's no warning that the power will go off, it happens so suddenly and abruptly.

It's been a frustrating experience working in an unreliable power supply, especially when I'm on graphic editing," said a videographer based here, who didn't wish to be named.

Although the public believe that occasional power blackouts due to technical problems are real, the level of disruptions occurring on a single day, that have been going on for months, are too lame an excuse to be taken as any serious technical issue requiring multiple shutdowns.

Or else, in yet another possible case scenario, the existing infrastructures might have worn out due to lack of replacement or upgradation, some observed.

"If this is the case, what, then, is the point of introducing Prepaid Metering System which has now covered most localities and households here.

There was erratic power supply before and the same problem continues even after the PMS.

Quality, reliable and regular service should be the hallmark of the Prepaid Metering System,"' pointed out Atim, a housewife.

Another housewife, H Awon, chipped in that lights often go out with the sunset.

"Power supply here has become unreliable and is apparently getting worst by the day.

I make it a point to stock up enough candles so that we don't have to eat dinner in darkness," she added.

While the MSPDCL source claimed that majority outage cases had nothing to do with its jurisdiction (distribution system) except for some occasional shutdowns for maintenance or restoration of transformers, the MSPCL maintained that its staffers have always ensured availability of incoming current at the main Hundung power sub-station.

The discussion of the matter has finally boiled down to a single factor.

As per a preliminary survey conducted by the Power Department, it has been found that the root cause of frequent power cuts in the township lies in the faulty distribution system.

It's learnt that two separate 33 KV lines are presently fed by the Hundung Cement Factory sub-station.

One from Ukhrul Town 33 KV Sub-Station to Jessami 33 KV Sub-Station spanning over 120 km, and the other from the Hundung Cement Factory sub-station to Nungbi 33 KV Sub-Station, about 60 km north of Ukhrul Town.

Reliable sources said that in the case of the Ukhrul Town-Jessami 132 KV line, the current flows from the Hundung Cement Factory sub-station to the Ukhrul Town 33 KV Sub-Station and then to Tolloi 33 KV Sub-Station, Namrei 33 KV Sub-Station and Jessami 33 KV Sub-Station.

"This is how the entire stretch of the four sub-stations has become conjoined in a single route of a 33 KV line, making it impossible to disconnect any particular sub-station for maintenance or operation.

So, any power disruption in any one of these sub-stations invariably results in power outage of the entire Ukhrul town," said the MSPDCL source.

According to a highly-placed source, Ukhrul MLA Ram Muivah has taken due cognizance of the root cause of frequent power failures in the town and has also initiated some positive actions towards addressing the problem.

In his representation to Manipur Power Minister Th Biswajit Singh on 28 March 2023, MLA Ram Muivah mentioned that the problem can easily be solved by making a dedicated 33 KV line to Ukhrul town only from Hundung Cement Factory 132 KV Sub-Station.

He suggested that the same could be achieved "by disconnecting the Ukhrul Town to Tolloi 33 KV line and constructing a new 33 KV line from Nungbi 33 KV Sub-Station to Namrei 33 KV Sub-Station which is approximately 30 km, so that Tolloi 33 KV line may be fed from Namrei 33 KV Sub-Station".

"That will permanently eliminate power cut of Ukhrul town without depriving power supply to any of the above Sub-Stations," he wrote in the letter.

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