Kochi (Keralam) [India], September 11 (ANI): A sudden power outage left the Keralam Power Minister Sunny Joseph literally and figuratively in the dark during his address at the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) Officers’ Federation state conference.
The power outage occurred during the state conference of electricity department employees held at Asir Bhavan in Ernakulam and became an embarrassing moment for the Minister at the state conference of the KSEB Officers’ Federation.
The minister was speaking about how the electricity department would be retained in the public sector and that a letter had been sent to the Centre stating that it would not be divided into three companies. Just as he was winning applause from the employees, the power went out, leaving the minister in the dark.
The Keralam Minister waited in the dark for some time, but neither the lights nor the sound system came back. He then left the stage.
During his speech, Joseph said that although AK Antony had warned that the post of Electricity Minister was a crown of thorns placed on his head, he was trying to turn it into a crown of gold.
Earlier today, Keralam Chief Minister VD Satheesan said that directives have been issued to tackle the ongoing electricity crisis in the State during a review meeting held with Chief Secretary Bishwanath Sinha and Chairman and Managing Director (CMD) of the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB), MG Rajamanickam.
The Chief Minister said in an X post, "Chaired an emergency review with the Chief Secretary Bishwanath Sinha IAS and KSEB CMD MG Rajamanickam IAS to address the current power crisis. Directives have been issued for immediate, high-priority actions to resolve the crisis."
After the meeting, Rajamanickam urged consumers to strictly limit their power consumption between 6:00 PM and 12:00 AM in view of the issue. He advised the people of the State to turn off all unnecessary lights and appliances. Restrict air conditioner usage to a minimum and defer electric vehicle charging to off-peak hours.
"My request is, especially between 6:00 PM and 12:00 AM, please reduce your usage by switching off unnecessary lights or appliances. Please reduce your demand during the evening time. Charge your EV during peak time. Usage of AC can be restricted to a minimum, where it's essential that you can use it. You can combine it with the fan or use the timer setting of the AC," he said. (ANI)
Keralam Power Minister Sunny Joseph left in dark mid-speech by electricity cut
