Kerala Power Cuts Spark Public Anger, Political War Between Congress and LDF

<p>Kerala is in the grip of a serious power crisis, with prolonged outages lasting over an hour drawing widespread anger from residents and handing fresh ammunition to the political opposition.</p>
<p>Power cuts have been reported across several areas of the state, with outages continuing past midnight and residents complaining of no advance notice. Households, children, and people working from home have all been affected. Videos circulating on social media show women with toddlers describing the difficulties caused by unannounced outages, while employees working remotely have also raised concerns. A large number of social media users have appealed to the government and the Kerala State Electricity Board (KSEB) to at least announce scheduled outage timings in advance so residents can plan their day.</p>
<p>Kerala Electricity Minister Sunny Joseph acknowledged the severity of the situation, saying the state is experiencing a sharp rise in electricity demand compared to the same period last year. "We have a situation in which power cuts will take place more than one time in a day," he said, adding that he had held special meetings with the KSEB chairman and other officials to assess the crisis.</p>
<p>Joseph said demand had increased by more than 1,000 MW year on year. "We can't limit it to one time because of the shortage. There is a demand surge of 1,000 MW right now when compared to what it was during this time last year," he said. The minister attributed the spike to the expansion of residential and commercial infrastructure and greater use of air conditioners. "We have constructed more buildings and houses in the last year, so naturally the demand is high as AC is there in all of these. And when the heat increases, the usage of fan and ACs also increase," he said. Joseph urged the public to cooperate, saying the shortage could continue for a few more days before the situation is brought under control.</p>
<p>The crisis has also ignited a political battle. The opposition Left Democratic Front (LDF) has accused the Congress-led state government of bringing back power cuts in Kerala after nearly a decade. CPI(M) workers were seen distributing candles among the public as part of a campaign mocking the government's handling of the situation. In one such campaign, workers reportedly referred to the first power cut as the "Indira cut" and subsequent cuts as the "Satheesan cut", directly targeting Congress leaders.</p>
<p>The government has maintained that the situation is temporary and has appealed for public cooperation while authorities work to resolve the shortage.</p>