In the wake of a severe windstorm that disrupted the power supply across various parts of the Jammu region, the Managing Director (MD), Jammu Power Development Corporation Limited (JPDCL), springing into action, launched a vigorous restoration drive, ensuring around the clock works to bring back the shattered power scenario on track.

Soon after the storm subsided, the MD JPDCL conducted a detailed assessment and directed the Chief Engineer and concerned Executive Engineers to initiate urgent restoration measures across all affected areas. The MD was apprised of major outages including the tripping of 220 KV Salal Circuit-1&2, 220 KV Jatwal Transmission line feeding Grid Station Gladni, 220 KV burn Kishanpur feeding grid station Burn, thereby affecting almost all 132KV/33KV Grid stations including 132kV Rajouri Grid, 132kV Canal Grid, 132kV Gladni Grid, Samba Ckt-2, Manwal Grid and a technical snag at the 220/132/33kV Grid Station in Ramban.

To keep the public informed, the MD instructed all the concerned officials to actively update the restoration status of their respective areas through local awareness channels. He also coordinated with the Deputy Commissioner, Jammu, to mobilise the necessary machinery for clearance of uprooted trees obstructing the restoration works.

Further, instructions were issued to all field teams to conduct physical patrolling to check line snapping and initiate restoration wherever possible, without waiting for complete restoration of the 220/132kV systems.

Key milestones achieved during the night included re-energising of 132kV Canal Grid, 132kV Kalakote Grid and 132kV Karra Grid, along with all lines from Kathua Grid, restoration of 132kV line from Udhampur, charging of one circuit of the Gladni Grid and restoration of nearly 90% of the transmission lines by around 12.30 pm midnight. The power load for Jammu Province was recorded at 190 MW at 1 pm, 948 MW at around 6 pm and by around 7:00 pm it had reached 1000 MW.

As of 7:00 pm today, nearly 24 hours after the windstorm, the power supply restoration status stands at 93% for 11 kV feeders and 96.49% for 33 kV feeders. Overall, more than 95% of the power supply has been successfully restored across the Jammu region, with restoration works continuing on war footing in the remaining areas.

The MD JPDCL has emphasized the need to expedite the remaining restoration activities, ensuring minimal inconvenience to the public. “JPDCL remains committed towards restoring full normalcy at the earliest and grateful to the public for their patience and cooperation during this challenging period”, he maintained.