Shillong, May 30 : Meghalaya is currently grappling with significant power disruptions across several districts due to recent inclement weather, characterized by heavy rain and strong winds. The Meghalaya Energy Corporation Limited (MeECL), through its constituent units MePDCL, MePTCL, and MePGCL, immediately activated emergency response protocols to assess damage and expedite restoration efforts.
Preliminary reports indicate that the “Eastern Zone” has experienced the most intensive disturbance to power lines and distribution transformers (DTs). The extent of the damage includes:
- 33 KV Lines: 931.00 km affected out of a total of 2794.00 km
- 11 KV Lines: 6589 km affected out of a total of 19767 km
- LT Lines: 12521 km affected out of a total of 37563 km
- 33 KV Line Feeders: 56 affected out of 168
- 11 KV Line Feeders: 120 affected out of 360
Major affected areas include various feeders in the Shillong Area such as 11kV Don Bosco, 11KV Ganesh Das, Polo-PHE & Nongmynsong MNREDA, 33 KV Nongthymmai, 33kV NEHU Meter Factory, 33kv Ladsmit, Double Circuit Bara Bazaar and MES feeder line at Sanibari, and 33 KV Mawlai Kench Trace feeder.
In Jaintia Hills, 11KV Khliehriat Line, 11KV PG Line, 11KV Rymbai Line, 11KV Lumshnong Line, and 33KV Kuliang & 11KV Tongseng Lines were significantly impacted.
Ri Bhoi Area saw disruptions in Umsning – Nongpoh Section, 33kv Killing line, 33kv EPIP-1 line, 11kv Umling line, 11kv Jorabat line, and 11kv Nongspung line.
MeECL field teams have been working tirelessly “round the clock” under challenging weather and terrain conditions to identify faults, replace damaged infrastructure, and restore supply. Key aspects of the ongoing restoration work include the deployment of additional manpower and materials from nearby divisions/substations and the prioritization of critical installations such as hospitals, water supply systems, and emergency services.
While a majority of affected feeders were restored within the minimum possible time, MeECL acknowledged that power restoration in severe rural areas has been delayed due to the adverse weather. However, officers and staff are putting in maximum effort to complete these restorations at the earliest. As of 7 PM today, over 50% of the affected lines had been restored, with work continuing “on a war footing.”
High-Tension Transmission Lines Affected and Restored:
High-Tension Transmission lines (132000 Volts) also experienced outages in Jaintia Hills and Ri Bhoi Districts. The affected lines included:
- 132kV Mynkre to Khliehriat Line 2: Affected by a broken jumper, causing intermittent tripping of the Myntdu – Leshka Generators.
- 132kV Lumshnong – Panchgram Line: Affected due to snapping of conductor at Chymplong Village.
- 132kV Stage 4 – Umtru Line 2 (Ri Bhoi): Affected by a landslide where bamboo touched the line.
- 132kV Umtru – Stage- 3 Line 1: Also affected.
