India, Haryana: A massive blackout left around 60,000 families along the Dwarka Expressway in Gurugram without electricity for up to 20 hours this week. The outage struck more than 43 societies and townships in the evening on 1 September after the 220 kV substation of Haryana Vidyut Prasaran Nigam Limited (HVPNL) in Sector 107 developed a fault following heavy rainfall, according to discom officials.
Dakshin Haryana Bijli Vitran Nigam Limited (DHBVN) confirmed that at least 13 switching stations of 33 kVA supplying these societies also shut down, compounding the crisis. DHBVN executive engineer Manoj Kumar said most areas had power restored by midnight, but two societies in Sector 107 remained without supply until 3 September in the evening.
Residents described a long and uncomfortable night. With no power backup in many affordable housing complexes, some were forced to sleep in their cars with air conditioners running. “I slept inside my car, as our society has no backup facility,” said Ranjana Mukherjee, 64, from ROF Aalayas. “When I reached the parking lot, I realised I was not the only one there, other residents were also downstairs with water bottles and basic items to get through the night.”
Builders acknowledged that affordable housing often excludes generator backup to keep maintenance costs lower, leaving residents vulnerable during extended outages.
Societies such as ROF Aalayas and BPTP Amstoria in Sector 102, M3M Woodshire in Sector 107, and ATS Tourmaline and Brisk Lumbini in Sector 109 were among the 22 locations where electricity returned only after nearly a full day.
Source: Hindustan Times
