Fix timings for power cuts
What’s with MeECL and load-shedding? Is there a fixed timing for power cuts or does it depend on the linesman who turns the power switch on and off?
At least till last week, the load-shedding timing was fixed — between midnight and 5 am and against from 1 pm to 3 pm making it a total of 7 hours of power cuts. However, the timing seems to have been changed without giving Shillongites enough time to adjust their routine and their daily life. We now have a new schedule for power cuts and we don’t know the exact time when load-shedding will begin.
Electricity is not a luxury but a fundamental right of the citizens. Our modern life and all the gadgets we use depend entirely on power. No electricity at home means no internet as well. Work is affected and productivity decreases.
If the MeECL cannot do away with power cuts, the least it can do is announce the timing of the load-shedding. This will ensure that citizens are not caught off guard. MeECL and those manning the sick corporation should understand that there are people working at night.
Recently, the High Court scathingly observed how there was a power cut during a hearing on a PIL. The hearing, incidentally, was on a PIL filed against the Power Department and the MeECL against the arbitrary load-shedding. Even the Judiciary is a victim of the power cuts.