Nagpur: Over the last three months, 120 incidents of underground electricity cable damage have disrupted power supply across Nagpur city, causing multi-crore losses to MahaVitaran (MSEDCL). Most of these damages were caused during road widening, drainage line work, and other civic projects — with 82.5% of the cases attributed to government agencies, according to official data released by MahaVitaran.
Between April and June 2025, power outages surged due to repeated damage to underground cables. The city saw 28 such incidents in April, 49 in May, and 43 in June. Of these, 99 cases were caused by government departments, while only 12 were linked to private agencies.
Major contributors to this disruption include the Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC) and the Nagpur Improvement Trust (NIT), which together damaged cables 57 times. Other agencies involved include MahaRail (13 times), Metro Rail (5), National Highways Authority of India (7), Orange City Water (11), PWD and World Bank Departments (5), and the Railways (1).
The Mahal area reported the highest number of incidents (40) due to ongoing flyover and infrastructure projects. Other affected zones include Congress Nagar (30 cases), Civil Lines (20), and Butibori (18).
In one recent incident on June 29, the damage to an 11 kV high-tension line near Jaydurga interrupted power supply to 16 transformers affecting around 3,500 consumers in Manish Nagar. Similar outages occurred on June 25 in Besa, and near Prajapatinagar Metro Station, where a 33 kV power line was severed. On June 18, 11 kV lines at Nandanvan and BSNL areas were also damaged due to civic works.
MahaVitaran stated that while minor damages are quickly repaired, major disruptions require time and resources, causing prolonged outages and financial losses due to reduced power sales and increased repair costs.
The utility has appealed to all government and private agencies to notify MahaVitaran in advance before commencing any excavation or development work. Such coordination, officials say, is critical to ensuring uninterrupted power supply and avoiding inconvenience to the public.
