Residents of about 2,000 homes in Ghaziabad’s Kanawani floodplain may finally receive legal electricity connections after the Uttar Pradesh government agreed to allow temporary regular connections in houses built in the Yamuna-Hindon floodplain areas, according to a report by Live Hindustan – NCR. Local electricity officials, however, said the process will begin only after formal instructions are issued.
New electricity connections have not been provided in the Kanawani floodplain for around 12 years. During this period, the electricity corporation did not install new poles, lines, substations or transformers because construction in the floodplain had been prohibited. At the time the restrictions began, the area had around 250 valid connections and only one transformer.
Construction nevertheless continued in the area, and residents of newly built homes began drawing unauthorised connections from houses with legal electricity supplies. The report also said that some transformers were allegedly installed without authorisation with local collusion. Because the existing network does not have sufficient capacity, residents face inadequate voltage, irregular supply and frequent faults.
The only legally installed transformer in the area reportedly breaks down repeatedly. Residents have regularly protested over the electricity situation. Last month, people blocked a road after alleging that valid electricity connections in the area had been disconnected. The reported decision to permit temporary regular connections has now raised expectations among more than 10,000 people living in the affected homes.
Residents have asked that the connections be provided quickly, saying the electricity shortage has continued for years. More than 400 people have already applied through the electricity corporation’s Jhatpat portal, with applications beginning around two weeks before the report was published. The connection process, however, has not yet started in Kanawani.
The immediate challenge will be to build an electricity network capable of serving the area. Officials will need to plan high-tension and low-tension lines, install new poles and place transformers according to local demand. The report said the planning process could take two to three months after official instructions are received.
The development follows the reported start of the connection process in similar areas of Noida. In Kanawani, local electricity officials have not begun implementation because they are awaiting formal directions from the government and the electricity corporation. Until those instructions are issued and the network is assessed, the approval does not by itself establish a timetable for energising the homes.
The next step is for the electricity authorities to receive the official instructions and prepare a new plan for supply infrastructure in the floodplain. That plan is expected to determine the locations of poles and transformers and the sequence in which applications can be processed.
