Dark homes, dry taps, idle factories: Gurgaon hit by 16-hour power cuts amid strike

GURGAON: Thousands of households went without electricity and water, nearly 1,800 manufacturing units faced disruption, and residents took to the streets as a three-day strike by Haryana's electricity department employees crippled power supply across Gurgaon on Thursday.With breakdown complaints going unattended, inverters running out of charge and industrial units struggling to keep production lines operational, the disruption exposed the city's dependence on an uninterrupted electricity supply for even its most basic needs.The strike, called to protest the Haryana Electricity Regulatory Commission's (HERC) decision to grant a parallel electricity distribution licence to private company Eleven Power for Gurgaon and Nuh, began affecting supplies from Wednesday night.By Thursday, power cuts had spread across residential colonies, industrial clusters and rural areas, with residents complaining that repeated calls to electricity officials and helplines had failed to bring relief.In several localities, prolonged outages also hit water supply as electricity-dependent boosting stations and household motors stopped functioning.

While some residents managed with water stored in tanks, others said their reserves would last only a few hours. In industrial areas, manufacturers turned to diesel generator sets, but these offered only temporary relief, with prolonged use restricted by overheating, cooling requirements and air pollution control norms.The scale of the disruption was reflected in the complaints received by Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam (DHBVN).

An official said the department received more than 3,000 complaints within the first 12 hours of the strike, while DHBVN's helplines received around 5,000 outage complaints on Thursday.Residents, however, alleged that neither the helplines nor the officials responsible for local supply were responding adequately.Gurgaon, which has around 8.5 lakh electricity consumers, saw widespread disruption, particularly in Old Gurgaon.

Residents said more than 50,000 households in the area were affected on Thursday, with several localities continuing to face outages even after hours of waiting. The agitation also affected Faridabad and Nuh, where residential areas and industrial units reported power cuts.No electricity, no waterFor thousands of families, the immediate concern was no longer just the absence of electricity but the inability to carry out everyday activities, from cooking and studying to securing drinking water.In Sector 9A, around 6,000 families were affected after power supply snapped around 3.30am on Thursday.

The outage also affected the boosting station supplying the area, leaving households without water. More than 16 hours later, supply had still not been restored, according to Suraj Bhola, general secretary of the Sector 9A residents' welfare association (RWA).“I have called the officials nearly 50 times, but nobody is responding. There is no electricity at our homes. Inverters have run out, and now there is no water either because the boosting station is affected.

How are people supposed to manage their daily needs?” Bhola said.He alleged that the junior engineer was not answering calls, while the sub-divisional officer had cited the strike. The helpline number provided by the district administration had also failed to secure relief, he said. With no clarity on when electricity would return, residents were unable to plan their day or arrange alternative water supplies.

Tankers, he added, were also difficult to find.In Hari Nagar, more than 7,000 families were affected after power supply went off around 10pm on Wednesday and remained disrupted for more than 16 hours, residents said. The accompanying water shortage left families struggling to meet basic needs.“People are suffering in their homes, children are struggling to study, and nobody is listening to us.

Junior engineer (JE) and SDO are not answering calls. The office has been locked, and there is nobody available to address the complaints,” said Sumit Gujjar, Hari Nagar RWA president.While acknowledging employees' right to protest, Gujjar questioned the impact of the agitation on ordinary residents.“If employees have an issue with the govt, they should take it up with the govt instead of leaving residents without electricity and water,” he said.The uncertainty over restoration was equally distressing for residents of housing societies, where backup systems could not meet every household's needs.At Zara Aavaas, an affordable housing society, residents said power had been unavailable since 5.30am.

The backup system covered essential services such as lifts but did not provide electricity to individual flats.Hemant Sharma, a resident, said the outage had created additional difficulties as pollution levels rose and restrictions under the Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) came into force.“On one hand, pollution levels are increasing and GRAP restrictions are in place, while on the other, the prolonged power outage has forced people to run diesel gensets.

Many residents have to work from home, but how are they supposed to work without electricity for so many hours? It is even more difficult for people with medical conditions who may depend on electrical equipment or need a comfortable indoor environment,” he said.Residents of Lotus Homz also struggled as the outage continued through the day.“There has been no power supply since 5am.

It has become difficult to manage even basic household chores. Even inverter ran out of battery and I had to cook dinner using the light from my mobile phone. We don’t even know when the electricity will be restored. The management has asked residents to move to the community hall, but while we somehow managed today, we don’t know what will happen tomorrow if the power supply remains disrupted,” said resident Anu Gulati.In Rajendra Park, Bhimgarh Kheri and areas near Gurgaon railway station, residents who had been without electricity since 10am staged a …