Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s call to switch off lights for nine minutes on Sunday 9 PM has raised fears about power grid failure due to sudden drop and surge in demand even as the government assured that every precaution needed has been taken.
While government officials and a section of experts said the 9 PM exercise is known in advance and the grid operators could plan accordingly, states have scrambled to ensure that the power supply is uninterrupted and there is no disruption.
States like Uttar Pradesh and Tamil Nadu have issued elaborate instructions on what should be done during this period to operate the power grid in “safe, secured and smooth manner” and to avoid “sharp crashing of load”.
