Frequent power disruptions affect residents of Vyttila, trigger protests

Image for representation | Photo Credit: THULASI KAKKAT Hundreds of households in Vyttila, in the heart of Kochi city, have been affected by frequent power outages for nearly a week, triggering protests by the public. Residents of Vyttila Janatha and Ponnurunni divisions have been at the receiving end with frequent disruptions in power supply at the night since August 1. The affected people include sections of residents along the Janatha Road, Major Road and Toc-H Road in Vyttila Janatha division and Ambelipadam Road and Kunjanbava Road in Ponnurunni.The supply was disrupted for hours between midnight and the early hours throughout the past one week, barring Thursday, according to Anu K. Thankachan, the councillor representing Vyttila in Kochi Corporation Council. On Saturday night, several local residents staged a protest in front of the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) office at Vyttila as power disruptions persisted. The protesters dispersed only after an assistant engineer reached the spot past midnight and tried to explain the situation to them.“The frequent and prolonged power outages have thrown normal life out of gear for the affected residents. The situation has affected the sleep cycle of many including children. There are also elderly patients who wear oxygen masks at night among those affected,” Mr. Thankachan said. He said the KSEB officials have promised to resolve the issue by Monday night.Shutdown of substationThe officials said the shutdown of a substation at Thykoodam as part of the works to enhance the capacity of a transformer has caused the trouble. “The supply from Ambelipadam feeder has been affected with the works and we have been depending on the Panampilly Nagar substation to ensure supply since the works started. However, the supply was disrupted due to excess load on the lines. The Ambelipadam feeder will be charged fully by Monday night which will resolve the crisis,” a KSEB official said.The KSEB Workers Association (CITU) has, meanwhile, alleged that the shortage of staff at the Vyttila office, caused by the alleged flawed policies of the United Democratic Front government, has resulted in the ongoing crisis in the area. The association said that it will take out a march to the Vydyuthi Bhavan, Thiruvananthapuram on Tuesday in protest against the alleged illegal transfers in the department. In a statement, it said that the UDF government is trying to lay the ground for the privatisation of the sector by creating an impression that the board is ineffective though it performed well during the previous LDF government's tenure. Published - September 07, 2026 05:32 pm IST