Residents of Gurgaon are facing another summer of frequent power cuts and tripping as the construction of a long-awaited electricity substation remains delayed. The project, critical for stabilizing the overloaded supply network in the fast-growing residential belt of sectors 99-105, has missed multiple deadlines, leaving thousands of households vulnerable to recurring outages during peak heat months.
Substation Delays and Coordination Issues
The electricity substation in Sector 99, which should have been completed a year and a half ago, is essential to offload the burden from existing feeders that are currently supplying far beyond their designed capacity. Officials have pointed to a lack of coordination between Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam Ltd (HVPNL) and the Gurugram Metropolitan Development Authority (GMDA) as a key reason for the delays. With temperatures rising and demand expected to surge, residents fear worsening disruptions if the project does not progress quickly.
An HVPNL official told the Times of India that the substation must be connected to the 400 kVA substation in Daulatabad, but HVPNL has not received approval from GMDA to lay the power cables. As a result, societies such as Habitat Prime, Pareena Laxmi Apartments, Aster Court (Assotech Blith), Pareena Coban, Heritage Max, Suncity, Gurgaon Greens, and BPTP Amstoria continue to suffer power cuts. They are currently dependent on the Sector 9 substation, which is already overloaded.
Project Timeline and Penalties
Construction of the 220 kV substation in Sector 99, costing Rs 62 crore, began in August 2023 and was originally scheduled for completion by March 2025. However, the project was delayed by nearly a year due to Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) restrictions, followed by a fine of Rs 16 lakh imposed by the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) last year on the contractor for pollution norms violations. The official stated that the CAQM penalty delayed work by six to eight months on substations in Sector 99 and Sector 37D.
Meanwhile, the Sector 37 substation will begin operations in June. HVPNL has completed construction of a substation in Sector 37 at a cost of Rs 22 crore, and it will be commissioned in the first week of June. This will benefit nearly 1,000 industries in the adjoining industrial area, along with nearby villages and colonies.
Residents Complaints and Night-Time Outages
Amit Duggal of Krona Optus Society in Sector 37C reported excessive tripping during the night. Prof. RK Ahuja of JMD Garden in Sector 33 also complained about night-time outages. The frequent tripping and long outages have troubled residents across the city. On Friday morning, the United RWA Federation submitted a memorandum to Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVN) regarding issues of low voltage, unannounced outages, and faults.
President of United RWA Federation Rakesh Rana said that residents of Vijay Enclave, Sai Kunj, and New Palam Vihar Phase-II are facing frequent power cuts. “Voltage remains low. There is constant tripping. Sometimes the transformer develops a fault, sometimes the power lines. The load is high, but the infrastructure is inadequate,” Rana said.
Data on Tripping and Outages
According to DHBVN data, Gurgaon district recorded 225 incidents of tripping on the 11 kVA line on Thursday. Due to a damaged cable box, the pump house feeder remained without electricity for nearly five hours, while the Bawla feeder saw an outage of about two hours and 45 minutes. Similarly, a fault in the 33 kVA feeder caused a power cut of nearly five hours and 45 minutes in the Adani Society. In addition, several colonies, sectors, and societies faced unannounced power cuts that DHBVN did not include in its report. This report was presented by DHBVN’s executive engineers during a meeting with managing director Vikram Singh on Friday.
Gaurav Saluja, a resident of ATS Kocoon Society, Sector 109, stated in his complaint to DHBVN officials that power went out at 10pm on Thursday and was restored only at 2am. The society ran generators for four hours, causing environmental pollution.
President of Sushant Lok Extension RWA Pawan Yadav said unannounced power cuts have become routine. Outages begin around 8pm and continue late into the night. “This has been happening for the last five years. Every year we request DHBVN to improve the power infrastructure, but no serious action is taken,” he said.
