SRINAGAR: Residents of Kashmir are returning to traditional ways to cope with the intense cold wave as frequent, unplanned power outages render modern heating equipment useless.
Kashmir is experiencing the harshest winter phase Chilla-i-Kalan which lasts for 40 days. The minimum temperature in Srinagar city dropped to minus 8.5 degrees Celsius on Saturday, making it the coldest night in 33 years. Other parts of the valley also experienced extreme sub-zero temperatures, causing water pipes to freeze in many areas.
Over the past few decades, as power supply began to improve year by year, urban residents of Kashmir have abandoned traditional heating devices – wooden ‘hamams’, ‘bukharis’ and wicker clay pots ‘kangri’.
However, as Kashmir is going through one of the harshest winters in recent years, power in most parts of Kashmir is spotty at best, making electric-powered gadgets unusable.
“In the past few years, we have become accustomed to using electronic devices for heating. With 12 hours of rest every day, we are now back in Kanglis,” said Yasir Ahmed, a resident of Srinagar’s posh Gulbach colony. Ahmad) said.
Ahmed believes the investment he made in installing air conditioning in his home has been “wasted”.
Abdul Ahad Wani, who lives in the Rainawari area of the old city, said he had converted his wood-fired hammam into an electric hammam.
“I think using a wooden hammam is cumbersome, and an electric hammam would be better because it can be used with just the flip of a switch. People in power are used to proving us wrong,” Wani said.
With limited supplies of LPG and kerosene on the open market, the electricity shortage means good business for those selling traditional fuels such as wood and charcoal.
“All I can say is that the demand for wood is good this winter. People have to stay warm and there is nothing better than wood during this period,” said firewood dealer Mohammad Abbas Zagar.
An official of Kashmir Power Development Company Limited (KPDCL) said that while the sharp increase in demand in winter has led to load shedding, the claims of 16 hours of reduction are somewhat exaggerated.
“We are trying our best to follow the load shedding schedule that has been announced. However, distribution transformers and other related infrastructure are sometimes damaged due to overloaded circuits, resulting in longer outages,” he said.
The official said that although KDPCL maintained its transformer fleet to ensure minimal service disruption, the number of damaged transformers increased exponentially during the winter.
“Our employees are doing their duty. We ask people to use electricity wisely as per the load protocol,” he added.
Meanwhile, traffic authorities are asking motorists to drive slowly and carefully as roads in many areas were covered with a layer of ice early in the morning, making them slippery.