Phase VII in Mohali remains without power for 16 hours

Our Correspondent

Mohali, September 22

Rain and wind caused damage last night, uprooting trees, damaging electricity poles and hitting the power and water supply systems in parts of Mohali.

Rainwater flowing from Chandigarh also caused damage to a temporary bridge and some houses near Jagatpura.

The power supply got disrupted in Phases VII and X, Sectors 66, 69 and 70 and other parts of Mohali around 1 am soon after the rain started.

Small trees got uprooted, branches broke and fell on electricity poles in certain areas. An electricity pole came down in Phase VII when a tree fell on it. The power supply remained disrupted in a pocket of Phase VII for more than 16 hours, putting residents to a lot of inconvenience.

Waterlogging was also witnessed in parts of Mohali. The water supply was hit in Phase VII and Sectors 70 and 71.

Monica, a resident of Phase VII, said life came to standstill without power for over 16 hours. The refrigerator was not working and the overhead water tank had gone empty and it could not be filled as the motor could not be run without power. The water pressure remained low and did not reach the first floor level.

Rajiv Vashisht, a resident of Sector 69, said the power supply got disrupted around 2 am and was restored at about 8 am. The water supply was also adversely affected.

Ranjit Rana, a resident of Jagatpura, said rainwater flowed from the Chandigarh side towards the village. It damaged the temporary bridge near Jagatpura and the water also entered some houses of poor people living in the area. He demanded that the rainwater flowing from the Chandigarh side should be channelled.

An SDO of Powercom, Mohit Nagpal, said some electricity poles got damaged on the PCA road but the power to parts of Phase X was restored within seven hours. He said it took much longer to restore the supply of power in Phase VII. Asked why power could not be restored even after 16 hours in a pocket of Phase VII, the SDO said an individual cable had got damaged and the supply would be restored soon.

Executive Engineer of the Department of Water Supply and Sanitation HPS Dhillon said water was supplied at low pressure in certain areas as the booster system could not be run due to the power failure. However, the system was run after the power was restored.