The winter has just set in and power outages have started to haunt the people of Kashmir Valley. In fact, it is an old story that people of J&K have been subjected to time and again, notwithstanding the claims by the successive the governments regarding improvement. People have to bear the harshness of the winters in absence of the electricity. The fact remains that they would not have to endure it if only there was uninterrupted electricity supply.
Despite augmenting power supply, the uninterrupted power supply or providing it even as per the time schedule announced by the PDD seems a far cry. Rather it appears to be unattainable. The people have been craving to see the concerned department improves its performance, and to provide electricity for a reasonable time length. The absence of electricity makes life miserable, irrespective of whether it is spring, summer, autumn, or winter. However in terms of severity, it ought to be winters. The scale of hardships caused by it is not something one needs to explain. The importance or dependency on electricity is simply more in contemporary times as against the past when people would do with burning woods or utilize charcoal differently. This year, the dependency for a few is more than fighting the harshness of the winter. They need electricity for survival against covid-19 giving importance to oxygen they need through machine run by the electrical energy.
Routines of life are determined by the supply of electricity. Almost ass aspects of life are contingent on power. The household chores are now entirely dependent on electricity. The administration must bear that this is the season for examination, and students have to put in extra effort in their studies which is inevitably dependent on light. Without electricity, everything turns upside down. Given the importance, the frequent and unscheduled power cuts are nothing short of violating the basic requirements of life. The concerned authorities must be held responsible for this. The justification that people put a lot of burden on the system is out of place as the need for electricity is linked to survival and one may do all it takes to meet the requirements. The authorities need to respond to the public outcry on the important matter. Gaps need to fixed and demand-supply ensured. There should be proper management and scheduled announced need to be adhered to in letter and spirit.
