Amid a regulatory blindspot, the release of 3,252 new commercial power connections across Uttar Pradesh between June 1 and 23, averaging nearly 14 connections a day, has come under scrutiny...
Amid a regulatory blindspot, the release of 3,252 new commercial power connections across Uttar Pradesh between June 1 and 23, averaging nearly 14 connections a day, has come under scrutiny following the Aliganj fire tragedy due to the scale of the rollout as the Directorate of Power Safety—the agency responsible for certifying electrical installations and ensuring compliance with safety norms—does not appear to have corresponding records of mandatory safety clearances for any of these newly energised connections, officials said.
Of these connections, 796 were released in the Madhyanchal region, which includes Lucknow and several adjoining districts.
Officials familiar with the matter say the situation has exposed a long-standing disconnect between the electricity distribution companies and the Directorate of Power Safety.
While distribution utilities process and release commercial power connections, the directorate does not have a real-time mechanism to verify whether every commercial consumer has obtained the required safety clearance before energisation. Likewise, the directorate is often unaware when a commercial connection is released unless the documents are independently shared with it.
“The two systems function separately. There is no integrated digital platform through which the safety directorate can immediately verify whether a commercial connection being released has a valid clearance,” said an official.
During the investigation into the Aliganj fire tragedy, officials of the Directorate of Power Safety found that the NOC (no objection certificate) submitted by the building owner could not be traced in departmental records. The document allegedly carried forged signatures of a former assistant director of the department.
Girish Kumar Singh, director of Power Safety, informed senior authorities that the NOC number cited in the documents was actually issued to another consumer and no record existed in the department’s database in the building owner’s name.
Officials are examining whether other commercial buildings may have obtained electricity connections using forged, manipulated or unverifiable safety documents. Particular attention is being paid to older connections issued during the period when safety clearances were processed manually.
Prior to 2022, safety clearances were largely issued through an offline system, making retrospective verification difficult in some cases.
According to official data, Uttar Pradesh currently has 26.26 lakh commercial electricity consumers drawing a combined sanctioned load of 95.88 lakh kW.
Officials estimate that nearly seven lakh commercial consumers have connected loads exceeding 50 kW, placing them in a category that requires greater scrutiny from a safety perspective because of the risks associated with high-load electrical installations.
In the Madhyanchal region alone, there are over 6.09 lakh commercial consumers, including 57,706 commercial consumers using over 10 KW load. Lucknow accounts for nearly 89,000 commercial connections out of which more than 10,706 are using over 10KW load with a combined load of approximately 3.9 lakh kW.
Notices to 489 commercialconsumers in Lucknow
The Lucknow Electricity Supply Administration has started analysing consumers whose electricity demand consistently exceeded sanctioned load limits, said Rajat Juneja, director, Commercial, LESA.
Notices were issued to 489 commercial consumers found drawing power beyond their approved load for three months or more in the state capital on Thursday.
Officials said the list includes coaching institutes, nursing homes, commercial establishments and industrial units.
Consumers have been directed to regularise their electricity load and submit fire safety clearances where required.
The highest number of notices were issued in the Amausi zone (189), followed by Gomti Nagar (123), Lucknow Central (107) and Jankipuram (60).
Anupam Srivastava is a Special Correspondent with Hindustan Times, Lucknow. Has produced exclusive stories in medical, civil aviation, civic, political and other issues for over 20 years.