Pulwama, Oct 20: In the heart of South Kashmir’s Pulwama district lies the Lassipora industrial area, a bustling hub of industrial activity. However, this thriving industrial zone has been plagued by frequent disruptions in the seamless supply of electricity.
For the industrial unit holders here, these power outages have become a recurring nightmare, causing significant losses and posing an alarming challenge to their operations.
The crucial industrial complex housing over 400 registered medium and small-scale industrial units has witnessed frequent power outages for the last 10 days.
According to industrialists, the disruptions in the power supply cause them substantial economic losses on a daily basis.
Manmeet Singh, owner of Astrid Industries told Greater Kashmir that the industrial estate “suffers a loss of Rs 10 to Rs 12 lakh per day’.
Singh said that there were many such manufacturing and recycling units which needed a seamless supply of electricity.
“For such units, a power cut of a few minutes means a considerable economic loss,” he said.
Kamran Bashir, another industrialist, also said that the area experienced frequent power outages over the past few days.
The most affected industries include CA stores, plastic moulding industry and boiler-based units.
Such industries, according to their owners, need a constant power supply.
“During the power cuts, we have to press generators into service, which significantly enhances our input costs”, said the unit holders.
A few months ago, the authorities operationalised a receiving station, adding another 10 MV to the existing 20 MV. According to the officials, the requirement for the industrial complex is 15 to 16 MV.
Nazir Ahmad, Superintendent Engineer, Pulwama said the area received an uninterrupted electric supply.
He, however, said that a few days ago the area witnessed brief power outages due to tripping in supply lines.
“ But the issue was resolved promptly and the entire industrial area is receiving round-the-clock power supply,” Ahmad added.