Bhopal: Even as the discom continues to impose hours-long power shutdowns across the city under the guise of “maintenance,” consumers in Bhopal witnessed a staggering 14,974 power cuts in May this year — averaging one outage every three minutes, according to internal discom reports accessed by TOI.
Of these, 6,896 outages lasted over five minutes, translating into one prolonged disruption nearly every six-and-a-half minutes. Though the number of outages was slightly lower than in May 2025, when 18,767 power cuts were reported, the decline comes despite last May witnessing frequent rain and storms throughout the month, raising fresh questions over the effectiveness of the discom’s year-round maintenance drives that routinely disrupt supply in several parts of the city for hours.
Feeder-Wise Breakdown of Power Outages
The internal feeder-wise data revealed that the Nabi Bagh feeder witnessed the highest number of trippings, at 107, during May, followed by Malikhedi with 105 and Vishwakarma Nagar with 97 trippings. CTO and Adampur feeders reported 95 trippings each, while several residential and commercial localities witnessed dozens of outages during the peak summer month.
Ironically, while residents across the city battled repeated outages and voltage fluctuations, at least 36 of the city’s 514 feeders reported zero trippings during the month. These included feeders supplying electricity to key government establishments such as Vallabh Bhawan, the state secretariat, and the Bhopal collectorate, besides several premium residential pockets.
Discom Claims Reduction in Trippings
Official sources in the discom, however, claimed there has been a reduction of up to 43% in trippings across nearly 240 feeders compared to May last year. A senior discom official, requesting anonymity, said maintenance work is aimed at reducing wear and tear in the network, but claimed most trippings in Bhopal occur due to “natural causes.”
“Bhopal’s topography and greenery are among the major reasons behind these conditions. A large part of the electricity network is overhead, and during strong winds, trees uproot or branches fall on supply lines, leading to trippings,” the official said.
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