Srinagar- Power supply across large parts of Kashmir has been partially restored after a severe windstorm triggered widespread outages across the Valley, with officials saying 60 to 65 percent of the electricity system was operational by Friday evening.
The disruption followed a powerful windstorm that battered Kashmir on Thursday, knocking out electricity supply and crippling essential services. Officials said the power system had nearly collapsed at its peak, with active load plunging to less than 100 megawatts against the Valley’s average daily requirement of around 1,700 megawatts.
Authorities said almost all 33 kV feeders, including those supplying emergency services, shut down after high-speed winds uprooted trees and damaged overhead transmission lines, plunging most areas into darkness and compounding public hardship amid harsh weather conditions.
Teams of the Kashmir Power Distribution Corporation Limited were rushed to the field to begin restoration work. However, continuous strong winds, poor visibility, and road blockages slowed repair efforts. Alongside restoring electricity, authorities prioritised clearing major roads to enable access for repair teams, with priority routes opened first, followed by secondary and interior roads in phases.
By Friday evening, officials said nearly 60 to 65 percent of the Valley’s electricity system had been restored. Managing Director KPDCL, Mehmood Shah, said Srinagar, which accounts for about 40 percent of Kashmir’s total power consumption, witnessed nearly 95 percent restoration.
An official said 100 percent of 33 kV feeders had been restored in three districts, including Srinagar, Ganderbal, and Anantnag. Of the total 135 33 kV lines, 112 were functional, while restoration work was underway on the remaining 23.
Of the 1,302 feeders of 11 kV, the official said 803 were functioning smoothly, 287 were under fault, while 212 feeders remained off due to outages in 33 kV lines or faults at receiving stations.
The official said that till 7 pm on Friday, the department was supplying nearly 1,050 megawatts of electricity against a requirement of around 2,000 megawatts across the Kashmir region.
However, electricity restoration in far-flung and upper-reach areas continues to remain affected as several roads are still blocked due to heavy snowfall, restricting access for repair teams. Officials said restoration efforts in these areas would begin once snowfall subsides and road connectivity improves, likely by Saturday morning.
The Valley usually records a power load of around 1,800 megawatts during this period, while the system is currently supplying close to 1,100 megawatts. Shah said this indicates that a substantial portion of the infrastructure has been brought back online within a short time.
He said the damage to the power network was caused primarily by an unusually intense windstorm rather than snowfall, calling it the most severe such event in many years. Despite advance preparedness based on snowfall forecasts, Shah said wind-related damage proved far more destructive.
According to Shah, the power utility has suffered losses estimated at Rs 5 to 6 crore due to damage to poles and transmission wires. A final assessment is still pending as several affected areas remain inaccessible.
He said KPDCL had adequate buffer stock and reserves to respond to the emergency and credited the pace of restoration to preparedness and the efforts of ground staff working under extremely difficult terrain and weather conditions.
Shah added that electricity supply in the Valley has remained stable over the past two years, with improvements in both availability and quality, and said further improvement in power supply is expected by the end of 2026.
