Ludhiana: A municipal crew hunting for a contaminated water leak severed a major underground high-voltage power line by accident on Wednesday, plunging an entire inner-city residential area into a day-long blackout.
The catastrophic digging blunder occurred at College Road near Fountain Chowk in Ward 71, where Municipal Corporation (MC) workers were using an excavator to investigate a two-day-old water contamination complaint. The heavy machinery tore through a 66 kV Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) transmission line. While no injuries or electrocutions were reported, the impact instantly triggered a massive power failure across the commercial and residential precinct.
Furious utility officials, who rushed to the scene after being notified by the council, stated that municipal staff failed to consult them before conducting deep excavation over critical utility corridors.
Local ward councillor Nandini Jairath confirmed the timeline of the error, admitting that better inter-departmental communication is urgently required. “The team was working to resolve a valid water leakage complaint when they struck the line,” Jairath said. “We have now formally directed municipal engineers to coordinate directly with the power utility during all future subsurface works to prevent a repeat of this disaster.”
PSPCL crews worked through the day to reroute power and repair the line, restoring electricity to roughly 90% of the affected consumers by Wednesday evening following a deluge of resident complaints.
Utility executives confirmed they are currently assessing the structural damage and will present the final repair bill to the Municipal Corporation for full reimbursement.
