Chandigarh faces major power outage as electricity dept employees go on 3-day strike

The electricity department employees in Chandigarh are on a 3-day strike against privatisation. Many areas of the city faced power outages owing to the strike.

Several parts of Chandigarh faced major disruptions in power supply after the members of UT Powermen Union started their strike against privatisation of the electricity department. The powermen have called for a three-day strike against privatisation of profitable electricity after the Chandigarh administration failed to convince them. The strike started from midnight of Monday, prompting the residents to brace themselves for a major power outage across the city.

UT adviser Dharam Pal held a meeting with the Powermen Union to persuade them to call off the strike, but no consensus was reached.

Despite the assurance of the administration that the necessary arrangements have been made to maintain an uninterrupted electricity supply, many parts of the city were left powerless for hours. The union has threatened to extend the protest indefinitely in case the privatisation move is not halted.

In view of the major blackout in the city, the administration informed the Municipal Corporation to arrange alternative sources of supply and seek aid from Haryana and Punjab for manpower. However, the residents were warned before hand of power and water supply breakdown.

The necessary arrangements were put in place to tackle any kind of emergency or crisis and Chandigarh police were also roped in to maintain the law and order situation owing to the power breakdown in the city.

At least thirteen technical engineers from the electrical wing of the engineering department and department officials were also deployed at various sub-stations to manage the crisis. The residents can also contact various complaint centres and police for electricity complaints.

The administration has set up three special control rooms in Sector 17, 9 and a Citizen Facilitation Centre to help the residents.