Farmers block roads as anger mounts against poor power supply
Chandigarh: Erratic power supply has forced farmers to hold multiple protests across Punjab.
Protesters camped on roads in Moga, Bathinda , Barnala, Mansa and Faridkot districts on Thursday and Friday, demanding an uninterrupted eight-hour daily supply for the agricultural sector and slamming unscheduled outages while the paddy crop is in its ripening stage.
The Bathinda–Faridkot stretch of the national highway and the Baghapurana–Kotkapura road were blocked on Thursday. However, a protest near Goniana in Bathinda was lifted late Thursday night after Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) assured restoration of power. Farmers from Bihlewala village in Faridkot district also spent a major part of Thursday night demonstrating outside the electricity grid at Sadiq.
On Friday, farmers staged a blockade at Pakho Kalan village on the Barnala–Mansa road. Members of various farm unions, including the Kirti Kisan Union, BKU (Ekta-Ugrahan), BKU (Khosa) and the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, threatened to intensify their stir if the promised eight-hour supply is not restored.
PSPCL chairman and managing director Basant Garg said four thermal units tripped on Sept 10, two 660 MW units at Talwandi Sabo Power Limited in Mansa, one 700 MW unit at Nabha Power Limited in Rajpura and one 270 MW unit at the Guru Amardas thermal plant . The simultaneous outages resulted in a generation loss of over 2,000 MW on Thursday. One unit each at TSPL and NPL has since been restored, with the remaining two expected back online by Friday night, which should normalise supply by early Saturday, he added.
Protesters camped on roads in Moga, Bathinda , Barnala, Mansa and Faridkot districts on Thursday and Friday, demanding an uninterrupted eight-hour daily supply for the agricultural sector and slamming unscheduled outages while the paddy crop is in its ripening stage.
The Bathinda–Faridkot stretch of the national highway and the Baghapurana–Kotkapura road were blocked on Thursday. However, a protest near Goniana in Bathinda was lifted late Thursday night after Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) assured restoration of power. Farmers from Bihlewala village in Faridkot district also spent a major part of Thursday night demonstrating outside the electricity grid at Sadiq.
On Friday, farmers staged a blockade at Pakho Kalan village on the Barnala–Mansa road. Members of various farm unions, including the Kirti Kisan Union, BKU (Ekta-Ugrahan), BKU (Khosa) and the Kisan Mazdoor Sangharsh Committee, threatened to intensify their stir if the promised eight-hour supply is not restored.
PSPCL chairman and managing director Basant Garg said four thermal units tripped on Sept 10, two 660 MW units at Talwandi Sabo Power Limited in Mansa, one 700 MW unit at Nabha Power Limited in Rajpura and one 270 MW unit at the Guru Amardas thermal plant . The simultaneous outages resulted in a generation loss of over 2,000 MW on Thursday. One unit each at TSPL and NPL has since been restored, with the remaining two expected back online by Friday night, which should normalise supply by early Saturday, he added.
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