Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s latest call – to switch off lights for nine minutes at 9 pm on Sunday and light candles, diyas (earthen lamps) to fight the darkness brought upon the country by coronavirus pandemic – “can affect emergency services”, the Maharashtra Energy Minister said. In a message, he has made an appeal saying: “Do not turn off all the lights at the same time”.
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“We should rethink before switching off all the lights at the same time at our homes. This can lead to a grid failure and affect emergency services,” Dr Nitin Raut said.
Explaining what he meant, he added: “Putting off the lights together at the same time can lead to a huge difference in demand and supply. Due to the lockdown, the demand has already decreased from 23,000 megawatt to 13,000 megawatt as factory units are not operating.”
“If all lights are put off at the same time, it can lead to a potential blackout, which will also affect the emergency services. It may take up to 12-16 hours to restore services. In fight against coronavirus pandemic, electricity is an important tool,” he said.
Some state electricity boards also fear that sudden mass power fluctuations could lead to a multi-state grid collapse and result in a blackout. In Uttar Pradesh, the State Load Dispatch Centre, the top body that oversees the power system in the state, has asked officials to have load shedding in the state from 8 pm to 9 pm on Sunday in a staggered manner to avoid a power crash. The Tamil Nadu power corporation too will have a staggered load-shedding in the state from 8 pm to 9 pm on Sunday.
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