A power distribution company line attendant was suspended in Khargone after two cows were electrocuted by broken live wires, triggering a nearly five-hour blockade of the Chittorgarh-Bhusawal highway and disrupting traffic at the district headquarters.
The incident took place near Bistan Road, where the cows came into contact with damaged electricity wires in a forested area. Cow protection activists carried the carcasses to the office of the superintending engineer on Kasrawad Road before placing them on the highway around noon. The blockade brought traffic to a complete halt and stranded hundreds of vehicles.
Superintending engineer Jaipal Thakur reached the protest site and announced the immediate suspension of Jitendra Bhalse, a line attendant posted at the Khargone Rural Electricity Centre. Thakur handed protesters a copy of the suspension order and appealed to them to end the blockade.
The demonstration ended after the power department’s action, with traffic resuming at around 5.30 pm and normalising by 6 pm. Police diverted vehicles through alternative roads while managing the disruption. An altercation also broke out between protesters and farmers transporting produce after they were caught in the traffic snarl.
Mengaon police station in-charge Mansharam Romde intervened to defuse the confrontation. The incident placed pressure on the electricity department over the maintenance of overhead lines and the response time to reports of damaged infrastructure.
Activists Satish Rathod, Hariom Yadav and Kamlesh Yadav said the incident was the fourth cattle electrocution death reported in the district in three months. They referred to earlier incidents on Mangrul Road in June and Musekhan Road on August 4.
The protesters alleged that residents had informed officials about the broken wires on Friday night, but that the power supply was not disconnected and repairs were not carried out before the electrocutions. The report did not include an independent response from the electricity department to that allegation beyond the suspension announced at the protest site.
The episode also highlighted how a local electricity-safety failure quickly became a wider transport disruption. By placing the carcasses on a major highway, protesters brought movement between affected routes to a standstill, affecting commuters, freight vehicles and farmers carrying produce. Traffic was restored only after the suspension order was issued and police created diversions.
The immediate official action was the suspension of the line attendant. The power distribution company’s further response to the repeated cattle electrocution incidents, including the allegations about prior warnings and repairs, remains to be established.
