Bhubaneswar: Tata Power-led Odisha DISCOMs have restored electricity to 39.74 lakh of the 40.91 lakh consumers affected by Cyclone Arnab, over 97%, within two days of the storm’s landfall on 28 October.
The restoration has been led by the DISCOMs’ linemen and field crews, who started work as soon as the winds eased. In heavy rain, across waterlogged fields and roads blocked by fallen trees, they cleared debris, replaced damaged poles and lines, and brought feeders and substations back online, often in areas cut off by flooding.
The cyclone brought winds gusting up to 150 km/h and more than 500 mm of rain in parts of southern Odisha, affecting 17 districts.
Restoration moved quickly because the groundwork was laid before landfall. Ahead of the cyclone, the Discoms activated their Business Continuity and Disaster Management Plans, opened 24×7 control rooms and set up rapid-response teams. The network was monitored round the clock from the Power Distribution Technology Centres at Bhubaneswar and Sambalpur.
More than 29,000 personnel were readied across the state. TPWODL mobilised 8,658 personnel in western Odisha, and TPSODL put 6,474 in its deployment plan, with additional crews on standby. The Discoms pre-positioned over 2,800 distribution transformers, 41,000 poles, 8,500 km of conductor, 35 mobile substations and 1,200 vehicles, and stocked materials at stores across their areas. Consumers received safety advisories before and during the storm.
TPCODL, TPNODL and TPWODL have completed 100% restoration, and supply is fully back in 23 of Odisha’s 30 districts.
In southern Odisha, where the cyclone hit hardest, TPSODL has restored supply to more than 16.7 lakh consumers, over 96% of those affected, across eight districts. Over 6,400 personnel are on the ground, and crews are now concentrated in Ganjam and Gajapati, the worst-hit districts, to restore the remaining connections.
The pace of recovery also reflects years of work to make Odisha’s distribution network more resilient to extreme weather. Since taking over, the Discoms have added substations and transformers, built real-time network monitoring through the Power Distribution Technology Centres, and developed local vendors and stores that can supply poles and transformers at short notice. Each cyclone season, these let crews isolate faults faster and restore supply area by area.
Speaking on the restoration, Gajanan Kale, Chief – Odisha Distribution Business, Tata Power, and CEO, TPCODL, said, “Our linemen and field teams have worked day and night, in some of the toughest conditions we have seen, to bring power back to homes, hospitals and essential services. We thank them, the State Government and district administrations for their support, and our consumers for their patience. Our teams will stay on the ground until every affected consumer is restored.”
The Discoms remain on alert. Consumers are advised to stay away from snapped wires and damaged electrical installations, and to report outages or hazards on the 24×7 helpline, 1912.
