Baramulla, Feb 14: Electricity consumers across Baramulla district are facing prolonged and unscheduled power cuts despite regularly clearing their monthly bills through smart meter-based billing, sparking protests and political intervention.
The additional outages, over and above the scheduled curtailment programme, began after the Kashmir Power Distribution Corporation Limited (KPDCL) reportedly adopted a stricter feeder-based approach to curb Aggregate Technical and Commercial (AT&C) losses—an indicator that measures the gap between power supplied and revenue realised.
However, residents allege that instead of recovering substantial pending dues from defaulting government departments, the corporation has resorted to blanket power cuts on entire feeders. As a result, thousands of domestic and commercial consumers who pay their bills on time are being penalised.
In the Kanlibagh area of Baramulla town, consumers say they are enduring up to six hours of additional power cuts daily because their feeder also supplies electricity to a government department with large outstanding dues.
“Why are we being punished for a crime we have not committed?” asked Fayaz Ahmad, a resident. “If a government department is a defaulter, why should we suffer just because we are connected to the same feeder? This is unjust.”
The situation escalated into protests in Jail Road and Khawjabagh localities, where residents accused the Power Development Department of depriving them of even their scheduled supply. Protesters alleged that while certain government installations on their feeders continue to have sizeable unpaid bills, the paying public is being subjected to extended curtailments.
“The department appears to be targeting common households to show reduced AT&C losses, while habitual defaulters—mostly government institutions—continue to draw power,” a protester said.
The issue has also drawn the attention of Baramulla MLA Javed Hassan Beig, who recently wrote to the Managing Director of KPDCL seeking immediate redressal. In his communication, Beig stated that the current curtailment programme of 11 kV feeders is being implemented strictly on the basis of AT&C losses linked to revenue realisation.
He pointed out that the present shortfall in revenue is largely due to unpaid dues of various government departments arising from non-availability of funds. “Unfortunately, the burden of this shortfall is being unfairly borne by domestic and commercial consumers who regularly pay their electricity bills. This defeats the very objective of revenue-based curtailment,” he wrote.
According to Beig, Baramulla town is witnessing nearly six hours of daily power cuts on 11 kV feeders and three hours on 33 kV feeders—an unprecedented situation in recent years.
The prolonged outages have severely impacted businesses and households, particularly patients suffering from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD) and other respiratory ailments who depend on oxygen concentrators requiring uninterrupted electricity. Families say they are compelled to arrange costly generators and inverters to ensure a continuous power supply.
