We had heavy rains the night of 4-5-14 and when I woke up the next morning, I found that the voltage was very low. I called the complaints number of Chamundeshwari Electric Supply Corporation and was told that repair was going on and that normal power supply would resume in 15-20 minutes. But even after 40 minutes, the problem persisted. So I sent an SMS to the concerned engineer after which the power was shut off completely.
This incident highlights the fact that the system does not function as it should. The assertion by the staff that repair work was going on even when the power supply was not completely shut off is shocking to say the least. Four CESC linemen have been killed by electrocution in the last year, the most recent one being a few days ago when the person who was electrocuted was not a lineman at all, but a worker sent up by the lineman. The point is, what is the system for ensuring that there is no voltage on the line before a lineman climbs the pole to attend to a defect?
Till recently, I was a member of the Consumer Grievances Redressal Forum of CESC and when I asked the engineering staff regarding the electrocution deaths of linemen, I was told that linemen are provided with an instrument that detects voltage on the line from below, and they should not climb the pole without using the instrument. This explanation implied that linemen who were electrocuted did not take the necessary precaution. But I could not get an definite statement about a foolproof system which ensures that when the lineman checks that the power is switched off and climbs a pole for repairs, somebody at the switchboard or the transformer does not switch the line on by mistake.
I have personal experience in operating and maintaining an electricity supply system. In the system I was working with, when the time came for line repair, the power was switched off and the key to the substation gate was taken by the line party, and when the defect was repaired, the line party would return and open the substation with the key. This guaranteed that there was no accidental switching on of power when the repair was going on. Some such system is needed here too.
Maj.Gen.(Rtd.) S.G. Vombatkere
This incident highlights the fact that the system does not function as it should. The assertion by the staff that repair work was going on even when the power supply was not completely shut off is shocking to say the least. Four CESC linemen have been killed by electrocution in the last year, the most recent one being a few days ago when the person who was electrocuted was not a lineman at all, but a worker sent up by the lineman. The point is, what is the system for ensuring that there is no voltage on the line before a lineman climbs the pole to attend to a defect?
Till recently, I was a member of the Consumer Grievances Redressal Forum of CESC and when I asked the engineering staff regarding the electrocution deaths of linemen, I was told that linemen are provided with an instrument that detects voltage on the line from below, and they should not climb the pole without using the instrument. This explanation implied that linemen who were electrocuted did not take the necessary precaution. But I could not get an definite statement about a foolproof system which ensures that when the lineman checks that the power is switched off and climbs a pole for repairs, somebody at the switchboard or the transformer does not switch the line on by mistake.
I have personal experience in operating and maintaining an electricity supply system. In the system I was working with, when the time came for line repair, the power was switched off and the key to the substation gate was taken by the line party, and when the defect was repaired, the line party would return and open the substation with the key. This guaranteed that there was no accidental switching on of power when the repair was going on. Some such system is needed here too.
Maj.Gen.(Rtd.) S.G. Vombatkere