Cyclone Remal causes damage of electricity infrastructure of Rs 5 Crore, Power Secretary

Amidst widespread power outages due to impact of cyclonic storm ‘Remal’ during past four days across Tripura, the secretary of Power department on Thursday said that the department has faced a loss of at least Rs. 5 crore due to damages of power infrastructures including electric poles and transformers.

Secretary of Power department Abhishek Singh accompanied by managing director (MD) of Tripura State  Electricity Corporation Limited (TSECL) Debasish Sarkar addressing a  press conference at Civil Secretariat  on Thursday afternoon said  that though there has been no loss of life in the state so far, but the  power system has been extensively damaged in all districts. Approximately 550 km of transmission lines, 850 power poles, and over 100 transformers have been affected.

In response to the power failure, Singh said that around 7,300 complaints have been registered and a rapid restoration operation is in progress across the state with 994 workers actively engaged for power restoration.

Till today, a total of 314 electric poles have been repaired and with the remaining work expected to be completed by Friday. Singh acknowledged the inconvenience caused in certain areas but assured that issues would be resolved within a short period. During two days affected by cyclone Remal on Monday and Tuesday last, many trees were uprooted in all districts of the state  and the power department in coordination with the Forest department and TSR are working to clear debris .

He added that in order to mitigate such natural disaster incidents in the future, the state government has decided to replace overhead power transmission lines with underground cables

“Already, about 60 percent of the power pole repairs have been completed, and we are committed to swiftly finishing the remaining work,” said Singh.

Speaking in the press conference, the State Project Officer of the State Disaster Management Authority Sarat Kumar Das said that the administration in collaboration with disaster management teams is undertaking an inclusive assessment of the statewide damage caused by Cyclone ‘Remal’ . He said that 1,574 houses have been damaged, and 12 relief camps are currently operational, sheltering 1,220 people.”

The MD of TSECL Debasish Sarkar highlighted the specific damage to the power infrastructure and said that primary focus is on rapidly restoring the damaged transmission lines and poles for restoration of normal power supply.