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While residents protest against power cuts in severe heat, opposition parties, led by Akhilesh Yadav, are trying to corner the BJP government, forcing CM Adityanath to step in
Yogi Adityanath and Akhilesh Yadav. (file)
As Uttar Pradesh heads into a politically crucial phase ahead of the 2027 Assembly elections, the state’s electricity crisis is rapidly turning into a major political battle.
While angry residents protest against long power cuts in severe heat, opposition parties, led by Akhilesh Yadav, are trying to corner the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government over governance failures, forcing Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to step in with warnings of strict accountability.
Even BJP legislators now appear worried about the growing public anger. Fearing political backlash ahead of the elections, several ruling party MLAs and ministers have written directly to Energy Minister Arvind Kumar Sharma, demanding immediate improvement in electricity supply and an end to unscheduled power cuts.
Chairing a high-level review meeting with officials of the Energy Department, Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL) and all DISCOMs on Sunday, the Chief Minister warned that negligence in electricity supply would not be tolerated at any level and strict action would follow any lapse. He directed Energy Minister Arvind Kumar Sharma and Minister of State Kailash Singh Rajput to conduct field inspections and personally monitor control rooms and complaint centres.
“From villages to cities, uninterrupted electricity supply must be ensured,” Yogi said, stressing that electricity was directly linked to people’s daily lives, irrigation, businesses and industries.
RESIDENTS IRKED
The strong remarks come amid mounting public anger across the state over prolonged outages during an intense heatwave. In Lucknow, residents staged late-night protests after hours-long power cuts, with angry locals blocking roads in Budheshwar and protesting in areas like Faizullaganj and Shyam Vihar Colony. In Bakshi Ka Talab (BKT), police deployment was increased outside substations following fears of unrest.
In Varanasi, a frustrated youth reached a power house carrying his bedding and insisted on sleeping there in protest against repeated outages. In Kanpur, Samajwadi Party workers staged symbolic demonstrations against the government, offering floral tributes and candles before posters describing the state’s electricity system as “dead.”
The ‘paper shield’ with which the fearful BJP MLAs and MPs are trying to save themselves in the form of a showy letter to save themselves from the ever-increasing anger due to the unbearable ‘Great Electrical Disaster’ in Uttar Pradesh, is actually not a ‘letter of public interest’ written to their government but to the sinking ship of the BJP… — Akhilesh Yadav (@yadavakhilesh) May 25, 2026
ADMINISTRATIVE ACTION
The crisis has already led to administrative action. Two transmission executives — Rahul, Executive Engineer (Transmission) in Ghaziabad, and Yogesh Kumar, Executive Engineer (Transmission) in Meerut — were suspended over lapses linked to power management.
During the meeting, Yogi directed officials to make the power supply system more accountable and consumer-centric. He said transmission networks must be monitored more effectively to minimise technical faults during peak summer demand.
“If electricity supply is disrupted, people should receive timely information about the reason and expected restoration time. Merely registering complaints is not enough,” the Chief Minister said. He also stressed timely billing and improving the efficiency of revenue collection systems.
The Chief Minister warned that negligence in transformer maintenance, feeder disruptions and complaint redressal would invite strict action. He asked officials to maintain rapid response systems despite extreme weather conditions such as storms and severe heatwaves.
HEATWAVE
According to officials, the severe heat this year has sharply increased electricity demand across Uttar Pradesh. Between April 15 and May 22, average daily power consumption rose from 501 million units last year to 561 million units this year, while peak demand increased from 29,831 MW to 30,339 MW. On May 20, 21 and 22, Uttar Pradesh became the country’s second-highest power-consuming state.
Officials admitted that electricity generation at some power plants had been affected after May 15 due to multiple reasons. However, they claimed the state managed the shortfall through power banking arrangements with 12 states.
The government also highlighted improvements in infrastructure to counter criticism. Officials said transformer failures had reduced significantly over the last few years. While 429 power transformers failed in 2022-23, the number reportedly dropped to 87 in 2025-26. Failures of large distribution transformers above 100 KVA also reduced from 39,177 to 20,292 during the same period.
Officials further said that 89.23 lakh smart meters had already been installed across the state. A new 1912 call centre service launched in November 2025 from Lucknow and Noida has increased complaint-handling capacity from 75,000 to 90,000 calls daily.
To provide uninterrupted power supply to every consumer of the state including common people, farmers, traders and industries. @UPGovt Today reviewed the power supply system with officials of Energy Department, Power Corporation and Discom.
Smooth and uninterrupted operation across the state…
— Yogi Adityanath (@myogiadityanath) May 24, 2026
POLITICAL REACTIONS
Meanwhile, the political confrontation over the electricity crisis continues to intensify. Akhilesh Yadav accused the BJP government, the electricity minister and “corrupt contractors” of being responsible for what he termed a “massive electricity disaster” in the state. He urged the public not to vent anger on junior employees and linemen.
Responding sharply, Energy Minister Arvind Kumar Sharma hit back at Akhilesh, accusing the previous Samajwadi Party government of presiding over a worse electricity situation and listing the BJP government’s achievements in the power sector in a detailed social media rebuttal.
On the other hand, the electricity crisis and public outrage ahead of 2027 state assembly elections have also left the BJP MLAs worried. Fearing electoral losses, BJP MLAs Rajeshwar Singh, Dr Neeraj Bora and minister Manoj Pandey have written letters to the Energy Minister of their own government, demanding improvement in the power supply situation. Meanwhile, BJP MLA Ashok Kumar from Salon alleged that even elected representatives are not heard by officials. He accused officials of extorting money in the name of inspections and disconnecting electricity without prior notice.
Meanwhile, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and Congress have launched sharp attacks on the government over the power crisis. BSP chief Mayawati, in a social media post, warned the government that providing relief to people during this extreme heatwave is its responsibility.
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