Mumbai: Power restored in most areas, trains return to normalcy
In the latest development, power has been restored in most parts of Mumbai, hours after an unprecedented cut threw residents into a state of disarray. Tata Power, whose incoming electric supply failure, caused the problem said in a tweet that supply was being restored from 12 noon and the process has been completed. However, some still complained on Twitter about no power.
Mumbai and Thane suffered due to power cut
Earlier, in the day, Maharashtra Energy Minister Nitin Raut explained that a technical glitch in Circuit 2 of the Kalva-Padghe powerhouse led to the power cut in Thane and Mumbai. "Our staff is working on it and power will be restored in an hour or 45 minutes," he had said. BEST PRO Manoj Warade said nearly 10 lakh customers were affected.
Inconvenience is regretted, said TATA Power after power cut
Trains were affected, commuters were told to not panic
The areas which were worst-affected due to the failure are Juhu, Andheri, Mira Road, Navi Mumbai, Thane, and Panvel. Naturally, the power cut also affected train services, seen as a lifeline of Mumbai's high-paced lifestyle. Western and Central Railways had informed that services were disrupted. The Churchgate-Borivali, CSMT-Kalyan lines were affected. Commuters suffered at Dadar and Mulund Stations too. Reportedly, services have been restored.
Train services restored between Churchgate and Borivali
"As the power supply is restored in WR's Mumbai Suburban section, all OHEs have been charged at 12.20 hrs and WR's suburban train services are restored between Churchgate & Borivali. Services were already on between Borivali & Virar, (sic)" Western Railways tweeted.
As train services were disrupted, passengers grew anxious
At CSMT, commuters were seen getting restless. "We are clueless about how long we will have to wait here," a commuter told ANI. Another said he was stuck since 10:00 am. Separately, at the Mumbai Central Railway Station, the BMC had made an announcement about the power failure, informing commuters that normalcy is likely to return within 45 minutes to one hour.
Central Railways asked passengers to "bear with them"
ATMs were not working, water woes were poised to begin
The power cut also affected ATMs at a number of places. A security guard deployed at an SBI ATM in Vartak Nagar, Thane, confirmed that the money-vending machine was rendered useless due to power failure. Separately, BMC had also asked residents to use water judiciously. "There will be reduced water supply or no supply," the municipal body warned residents earlier today.
Airport, both stock exchanges remained unaffected
While trains suffered, bringing most of Mumbai to a halt, the airport remained functional. "Operations at Mumbai's Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj International Airport is normal," said the PRO. The power failure didn't have an impact on trading at both the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), either. "The listing ceremony was concluded successfully for Mazagon Shipbuilders today morning," BSE told CNBC.
"This is what we get for inflated bills?"
Soon after the power cut, reactions trickled in on Twitter. Amar Butala, the COO of Fox Star Studios, wrote, "And another unannounced power cut by @Adani_Elec_Mum. Start of the week, power cut!! And this is what we pay your inflated bills for! (sic)" "Lavasa Lonavla Alibaug too? Are you serious? Bandra folks were just heading there," tweeted Anupam Gupta.
Adani Power System said it was working toward restoring normalcy
Earlier, Adani Power System said it was able to sustain the grid failure. "AEML is currently supplying to critical services in Mumbai Around 385MW through AEML Dahanu generation. Our teams are working to restore the supply in the affected areas at the earliest. We regret the inconvenience caused," a tweet read. Fortunately, no disruptions were reported from hospitals, burdened by coronavirus caseload.
