Residents of Noida's Sector 105 are grappling with persistent and disruptive power outages, with daily blackouts lasting for one to two hours, despite lower electricity consumption typical of the winter season. The sector, home to approximately 8,000 people, is plagued by an ageing power network and overgrown vegetation that frequently damages supply lines.
Incidents Highlight Systemic Failures
The fragility of the power supply was starkly exposed on Thursday when a tree branch fell onto an 11 kV high-tension line feeding the sector, causing a blackout that lasted several hours. The very next day, Friday, different parts of Sector 105 again suffered intermittent power failures.
This is not a new problem for the locality. In a severe incident in August last year, a faulty underground cable triggered a marathon power outage. Residents of B block were without electricity for nearly 14 hours, while those in blocks A, C, and D endured a 10-hour blackout.
Residents Voice Frustration Over Neglect
The Resident Welfare Association (RWA) leadership has pinpointed the core issues. RWA President Deepak Sharma acknowledged that winter dew can cause cable faults but emphasized that the daily power cuts are primarily due to overgrown trees. "The branches are grazing the high-tension line, resulting in the outages," he stated.
RWA General Secretary Rajeev Dublish expressed frustration over inaction despite repeated complaints. He highlighted that while the sector was developed in 2011, there has been hardly any revamp of the power infrastructure to keep pace with rising demand. "We have made several complaints about the pruning of trees, but to no avail," Dublish added.
Power Department's Response
When contacted, Vivek Patel, the Superintendent Engineer of the Noida power department under PVVNL, responded to the growing complaints. He assured that the department will investigate the problems and address the issues raised by the aggrieved residents of Sector 105.
The situation underscores a critical urban infrastructure challenge in developing sectors, where maintenance and upgrades fail to match the pace of habitation and increasing power needs, leaving citizens to face regular disruptions in their daily lives.
