File picture of a boy studying in the light of a candle during power cut in Bhubaneswar

Bhubaneswar, May 12: The scorching sun today forced residents stay indoors, but unscheduled power cuts in several areas across the city made life difficult for them.

Bhubaneswar today recorded a temperature of 43.2°C, which has been the highest in the month of May in the past five years. The city’s temperature had last crossed 43°C in 2008, when the mercury had soared to 44°C.

Though the state government has asked the districts collectors to ensure uninterrupted power supply, several areas in the city have been witnessing unscheduled power cuts.

Residents of Rasulgarh, Saheed Nagar, Ashok Nagar, GGP Colony and Kharavela Nagar alleged that frequent unscheduled power cuts had become a regular affair in their areas. “It is hot and humid outside. But, power cuts have made it worse. Unscheduled power cuts are also taking place during night hours, making life miserable for us,” said Deepak Mishra, a resident of Rasulgarh.

The city’s electricity consumption has increased because of the heat wave condition. An official in the Central Electricity Supply Utility (Cesu) said that power consumption of the city had increased to 310MW in April while the same stood between 270MW and 275MW in March this year.

Though the Cesu had upgraded nearly 30 sub-stations in the city by February 28, the sudden rise in temperature and extensive use of the air-conditioners has led to more demand of power.

Cesu officials, however, denied the allegations of frequent unscheduled power cuts. “There was a technical snag in the Mancheswar grid, which led to power cut for around 10 minutes at several places in the city today. But the problem was sorted out and power supply was normal after that,” said manager of Cesu’s Bhubaneswar city distribution division-I U.B. Khadanga.