GULMI, Feb 9 : Locals of Gulmi were elated when the district was freed from prolonged power shortage six years ago. However, an unannounced load-shedding in recent days has taken its toll on their lives.
The locals are deprived of electricity especially in the morning and night time. Sometimes, there is no electricity even during the day time. This has adversely affected the production of industries, factories and also the operation of communication services as well. The locals have vented their ire against the Nepal Electricity Authority (NEA) for turning a blind eye to the plights of the locals. "Our village has been living in the dark for a week but the NEA is silent," said Deviram Giri of Malika Rural Municipality-5, Chaphile. He laments that the locals are not even aware about whom to contact for solving the problem of power cuts.
Changes felt in daily life
The locals' repeated efforts to draw the attention of the responsible authorities have gone in vain. "Schools, colleges and factories have been badly affected by the load shedding but no one is concerned," said human rights activist Ganesh Shrestha.
The district has a 2.4 MW hydropower in Hugdi and 5MW hydropower in Ridi. But currently, the hydropower plant in Ridi produces just 1.2 MW of electricity.
According to Megh Raj Joshi, an NEA engineer, the electricity produced in Gulmi is not enough. As a result, they are obliged to buy electricity from other districts. Due to the unannounced power cuts, the locals have not been able to even charge or operate their communication devices.
Despite being aware about the load shedding, local representatives have shown no concern to solve the problem. "It is the responsibility of the representatives to solve our problems. That is why they were elected," said Keshav GC of Isma Rural Municipality-4. According to him, the problem of unannounced load shedding is a major problem and the representatives and authorities concerned must do something to address this problem.
