Ghaziabad: Several areas of Indirapuram, including Abhay Khand, Gyan Khand and Nyay Khand, saw an hours-long power cut on Thursday that lasted from 3am to, in most affected areas, 6am. A cable fire at the Kala Pathar substation sparked the outage. Authorities are probing whether it was a case of arson after equipment with which cables could be cut was found near the substation.A team of the fire department reached the spot and doused the fire in half an hour. An official said an alternate power source was arranged for and supply to the affected areas resumed by 6am. The repairs to the damaged cables at the Kala Pathar substation are under way.Sub-divisional officer at the substation BP Sahu told TOI that the fire occurred around 3 am. The cables where smoke was detected were under a trench covered with a concrete slab. He said it could have been triggered by garbage stored close to the spot but arson could not be ruled out. Guards of nearby housing societies informed officials of the power department that they saw two persons running away from the substation soon after the fire broke out. “In addition, an iron hacksaw was also discovered at the site, adding to the suspicion that it might be a case of arson,” he said.Meanwhile, many residents from the affected areas said the disruption in power supply continued till after 12pm.“While the power came back after 6am, there was again an outage after an hour that continued for about four hours,” said Garima, who lives in Vidhayak Colony in Nyay Khand 1.BD Sharma, who lives in IRS Society in Abhay Khand 2, said the power backup at the housing ran out during the outage. “Electricity came back for a short time only before supply was cut again,” he said. Some others said the power fluctuations continued till 2pm.
The cables where smoke was detected were under a trench covered with a concrete slab
