Benaulim power outages have continued across several coastal villages in Goa’s Salcete region despite a Rs 44.2 crore infrastructure investment, a direct underground supply from Xeldem and a comprehensive replacement of transformers, poles and transmission lines.
Residents have faced frequent and prolonged interruptions for about a month and a half, disrupting households, businesses and other electricity consumers during hot and humid post-monsoon conditions. The outages have persisted even after the electricity department undertook major work intended to improve the reliability and continuity of supply in the Benaulim constituency.
The department invested Rs 44.2 crore in 2024 to strengthen the local power network. A key part of the programme was a proposed 58-km underground cabling network linking the Benaulim substation directly to Xeldem. The arrangement was intended to improve distribution efficiency and reduce the difficulties involved in identifying and repairing faults on older overhead lines.
Former assistant engineer Nicholau Moraes said the earlier overhead connection between the Xeldem and Cuncolim substations passed through fields, forests and waterlogged areas. These conditions made fault detection and maintenance difficult, often delaying restoration when interruptions occurred.
The electricity department also replaced transformers, electrical poles and transmission lines across the constituency. Power minister Ramkrishna ‘Sudin’ Dhavalikar said the transmission lines had originally been established in 1965 and had subsequently been repaired on a piecemeal basis. A complete network revamp was undertaken in 2024 at a cost of Rs 11 crore.
Moraes said the power situation had improved fourfold following the infrastructure overhaul. The commissioning of the direct underground supply from Xeldem was expected to strengthen the system further, particularly for the coastal villages connected to the Benaulim network.
However, the improvements have not benefited all consumers uniformly. The continuing interruptions indicate that completing major network works has not, by itself, delivered consistent supply across the constituency. The gap between upgraded infrastructure and the experience of consumers remains the immediate issue for residents awaiting dependable electricity.
Benaulim MLA Venzy Viegas acknowledged that additional work was required to provide uninterrupted, round-the-clock electricity. He said the infrastructure completed so far was only one phase of a larger improvement programme. A new substation is planned under the second phase to further strengthen the power supply network.
For now, consumers in the affected coastal villages continue to face repeated outages while the next phase of the programme remains pending. The planned substation is the next stated milestone in the effort to extend the benefits of the network overhaul across the constituency.
