Kejriwal using false narratives to mislead people on power cuts: Minister

Responding to AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal’s remarks on power cuts in the city’s Jagatpur Extension area, Delhi’s Power Minister Ashish Sood said on Friday that the electricity supply in the area has already been improved and that the reported power cut was a minor and localized incident.

The minister emphasised that, upon taking charge, the government prioritised reviewing the preparedness of all DISCOMs within the first month. He accused Kejriwal and the AAP of playing politics on every issue to instil fear among the people of Delhi to sustain his own and his party’s diminishing political relevance.

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He said the planned power outages occur every year as part of both Summer and Winter Action Plans, allowing the DISCOMs to carry out essential maintenance work on transmission lines.

He dismissed Kejriwal’s claims of prolonged power outages in the Burari area as factually incorrect, stating that officials from the power department have been dispatched to verify the truth.

The minister also presented the data on power outages, stating that in January 2025 alone, there were 3,278 instances of power cuts. He offered to share a decade’s worth of power cut data, asserting that Kejriwal, having never actively managed any department, lacks awareness of the ground reality.

He accused Kejriwal’s aides of withholding crucial information from him, leading to his misleading statements.

Countering the AAP chief’s claim that there were no power cuts during his tenure, Sood cited the data from the State Load Dispatch Centre (SLDC)that monitors all grids in Delhi.

He asked Kejriwal to verify the facts instead of spreading misinformation. He also alleged that Atishi was compelled to defend Kejriwal, given her position in the party.

He said that Delhi’s peak power demand this summer is expected to reach 9,000 MW, and the government has assessed the power purchase agreements of all electricity companies, and instructed the Delhi Electricity Regulatory Commission (DERC) to review these agreements under Section 108.

The minister directed gathering of details of the existing power purchase agreements. According to him, a 24×7 control room has been established to address electricity-related concerns. He also announced the formation of a joint control room with DTL and DISCOMs to monitor power loads in real time.

This system will help identify overburdened feeders, prevent asset damage, and allow for load redistribution between feeders.

Sood said if needed, the Delhi government would seek permission from the Centre to procure electricity from the unshared power schedule.

Sood presented statistical data according to which, during the previous government’s tenure, there were significant power outages lasting over an hour each month —2,660 instances in January 2024, 2,881 in February, 2,745 in March, 1,567 in April, 676 in May, 605 in June, 602 in July, 690 in August, 1,531 in September, 1,852 in October, 1,000 in November, 1,510 in December, and 3,278 instances in January 2025.