Several villages in Shopian face frequent power cuts

Shopian, Dec 24: Several villages in south Kashmir's Shopian district are facing  recurring power curtailments largely due to overloading of a  receiving station.

Scores of villages fed from the Chitragam power receiving  station  have to bear the brunt of power curtailments.

More than 40 villages including Chitragam, Manihal, Nagbal , Chotipora and Handew witnessed protracted power cuts.

"We experience frequent and long power outages, spurring us to resort to conventional modes of lighting", said many  residents from these villages.

They said that they have to face immense hardships during the ongoing harsh season in the absence of regular electric supply.

They said that due to overloading of the receiving station the authorities have  to make frequent curtailments.

The 20 MVA Chitragam receiving station comprising 9 feeders was commissioned decades ago, catering to a major population.

Sources told Greater Kashmir that it was not possible to run all the feeders simultaneously.

They also said that many consumers were using electricity significantly  more than the agreed-upon load, prompting them to curtail the electricity.

"They use crude heating appliances and other electronic devices beyond their agreed upon-load", they said.

An official said that the proposal for the augmentation of the receiving station has been approved under Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme ( RDSS).  He, however, appealed to the consumers to use the electricity judiciously.