Punjab, especially numerous areas in Ludhiana, particularly Model Town, are reeling under 12‑16 hour power cuts, leaving homes in darkness and families gasping in the heat. The centralized complaint number remains switched off, PSPCL’s app shows complaints “not assigned” for hours and officials are unreachable on phone or Twitter. Inverters have drained, turning nights into ordeals. Residents describe the crisis in stark terms.
‘We Feel Abandoned’: Consumers Recount Suffering, Neglect During Power Crisis
“Our elders are fainting, children are dizzy. This is not inconvenience, this is cruelty,” said Harpreet Singh of Model Town, Ludhiana. Another aggrieved power consumer, a housewife Jatinder Kaur from Bathinda, said, “We lodge complaints but they vanish into thin air. No one picks up the phone, no one responds online. It feels like we are abandoned.”
Homes Turn into Furnaces, Work Comes to a Standstill Amid Prolonged Power Outages
The human cost is severe. Elderly residents complain of dizziness and fainting spells, while younger people report pounding headaches in the suffocating heat. With temperatures hovering above 42°C, the absence of electricity has turned homes into furnaces. The irony is glaring: the Union government urges citizens to “work from home,” but in Punjab, laptops, computers and routers lie lifeless without power. The crisis is not about Modi’s directions—it is about the failure of the Bhagwant Mann government and Punjab State Power Corporation Limited (PSPCL) to ensure basic supply.
‘Free Power Is a Mirage’: Residents Allege Blackouts Are Pushing Them Beyond the 600-Unit Limit
“The government promised us uninterrupted power and even free 600 units. But when the supply itself is missing, what use is free electricity?” asked Ramandeep Singh, an entrepreneur. Venting his anger against the Punjab Government and PSPCL, Sushil Kumar of Jalandhar told The News Gateway, “When power resumes, inverters consume double units to recharge. Bills shoot past the 600‑unit limit. Free power is a mirage, not relief.” It is pertinent to mention here that when an inverter is charging its battery, it consumes more electricity than the battery ultimately stores because no charging system is 100% efficient. This is because the charging process involves both the inverter’s own idle consumption and the energy needed to restore the battery, which may include inefficiencies and heat losses.
‘Government of Advertisements, Not Administration’: Harsimrat Slams AAP Over Widespread Power Cuts
Former Union Minister and Bathinda MP Harsimrat Kaur Badal said, “During our regime, Punjab got the distinction of being a power surplus state and was known for providing uninterrupted power supply but under the AAP government, people are once again living through the dark days of endless power cuts. The government boasts of being ‘power surplus’ while families suffer sleepless nights, students study in darkness and farmers struggle for irrigation. This is a government of advertisements, not administration. The truth is that AAP has turned a power-surplus Punjab into a power-deficit Punjab through sheer incompetence, poor planning and mismanagement.”
‘Punjabis Need Reliable Power, Not Propaganda’: Warring Targets AAP Over Outages
Punjab Pradesh Congress Committee (PPCC) President Amarinder Singh Raja Warring said, “Punjab’s power situation has become a symbol of the AAP government’s failure. While ministers remain busy with publicity campaigns, ordinary citizens are battling frequent outages in scorching heat. The government claimed it would transform Punjab but instead it has taken the state backwards. The gap between AAP’s claims and the suffering of the people has never been wider. Punjabis deserve reliable power, not excuses and propaganda.”
BJP Claims Punjab’s Blackouts Have Exposed the Reality Behind AAP’s Power Promises
Many of the senior BJP leaders said, “The AAP government has plunged Punjab into darkness—literally and figuratively. At a time when farmers need power to irrigate their fields and households are reeling under 46°C heat, the ruling dispensation has failed to provide even basic electricity. This collapse is not just about power cuts; it is symbolic of a deeper governance deficit. Drugs flow unchecked, law and order has crumbled, and now even the lights have gone out. Punjab deserves a double‑engine government that can deliver prosperity, security and uninterrupted power to every home and farm.”
