By – Addie Chiphang
Ukhrul, July 4:
The hill town of Ukhrul, nestled in the highlands of Manipur, continues to reel under the grip of erratic and unreliable power supply, leaving thousands of consumers frustrated and daily life severely disrupted. The town, which has over 10,000 registered power consumers under the Prepaid Metering System, has witnessed frequent and unannounced power cuts ranging from minutes to several hours—and at times, lasting an entire day.
What’s most disturbing is that these power outages are not part of any official load-shedding schedule. Instead, they are mostly attributed to “technical issues”—a term which has now lost meaning among residents who face blackouts daily without clarity or timelines for restoration. Worse still, when storms knock down transmission poles or high-tension wires snap due to weather or tripping, it takes several days for repair teams to respond—often delayed by the poor road conditions and lack of nearby response units.
A significant contributing factor to this problem is the absence of a dedicated Manipur State Power Corporation Limited (MSPCL) transmission office in Ukhrul town. The MSPCL, responsible for transmission, currently stations its limited staff at the Hundung Cement Factory sub-station, miles away from the main town. This station is tasked with powering a vast network that includes Ukhrul and multiple other sub-stations such as Tolloi, Namrei, Nungbi, and Jessami through an interconnected 33KV line.
This convoluted setup means that a fault in any part of the line—from Ukhrul to Jessami—automatically plunges Ukhrul town into darkness. “The entire stretch is conjoined in one single 33KV route. So, any disruption in Tolloi, Namrei, or Jessami affects Ukhrul too. There’s no option to isolate any segment for maintenance without shutting the whole system,” explained an official from the Manipur State Power Distribution Corporation Ltd. (MSPDCL), which handles local distribution and maintenance.
As a result, MSPDCL is left helpless every time the transmission system malfunctions—waiting for MSPCL teams to arrive from Imphal, nearly 84 km away. During monsoons, this delay worsens due to the hazardous road conditions.
The impact on daily life and livelihoods is enormous. Local businesses, especially those relying heavily on electricity like cyber cafes, video production units, and food outlets, are bearing the brunt. “There’s no warning. One minute we’re editing a project, and the next, everything goes dark,” said a local videographer. “It’s draining our time and resources.”
Residents have expressed disappointment that even after the implementation of the Prepaid Metering System, power supply remains as erratic as ever. “We were told the prepaid system would improve services. But there’s no improvement. Instead, it feels worse now,” said PhyPhi, a homemaker.
Another resident, Ashim, added, “We dine by candlelight most evenings. I stock candles like essential groceries now. The power goes off like clockwork at dusk.”
In a significant step to address this deepening crisis, Ukhrul MLA Ram Muivah, a retired IAS officer and Member of the Manipur Legislative Assembly, has proactively taken up the issue with both state and central authorities. Citing the findings of a preliminary survey by the Power Department, Muivah highlighted that the crux of the problem lies in the flawed distribution layout stemming from the Hundung 132 KV sub-station.
In his official representations dated March 28, 2023, and further reiterated in letters sent to Power Minister Th. Biswajit Singh and the Governor of Manipur, Muivah recommended a technically feasible and cost-effective solution: the construction of a dedicated 33KV line exclusively for Ukhrul town.
Ukhrul MLA Ram Muivah suggested:
Disconnecting the Ukhrul-to-Tolloi 33KV line, which currently feeds multiple sub-stations in a single chain.
Constructing a new 33KV line from Nungbi to Namrei, a stretch of around 30 km, so that Tolloi and other sub-stations could be powered separately from Namrei.
“This move will permanently resolve the power outage issue in Ukhrul town without compromising the supply to other sub-stations,” Muivah stated. The proposal has been endorsed by multiple officials, including the Under Secretary (Power) Athing Kasar and the Joint Secretary to the Governor Md. S. Daulat Khan, who have acknowledged the urgency of the matter and requested expedited action.
Despite the clear technical justification and official backing, progress remains slow. Bureaucratic inertia and infrastructural limitations continue to delay implementation. However, Muivah has kept the pressure on, forwarding media reports such as The People’s Chronicle’s “Frequent Outages Deepen Ukhrul Power Crisis” as evidence of the worsening situation and the need for immediate intervention.
The power crisis in Ukhrul is not just an issue of discomfort—it’s a public service failure affecting health, safety, education, and the economy. Children struggle to study under candlelight, small businesses bleed losses, and basic communication systems falter in the dark.
It is high time the Power Department and the Manipur government treated this issue with the seriousness it deserves. The construction of a dedicated 33KV line is not a luxury—it is an essential, overdue corrective measure. The people of Ukhrul deserve a reliable power supply that matches the promise of prepaid systems and modern governance.
As Muivah continues his crusade for uninterrupted electricity for his constituency, it remains to be seen whether the authorities will act with urgency or continue to leave Ukhrul’s citizens in the dark—literally and metaphorically. For now, candles remain the town’s most dependable source of light.