Jharkhand HC Asks Power Dept To Not Cut Electricity During Festivals, Directs Action To Protect Procession-Goers From Overhead Tension Lines

In a suo moto action, the Jharkhand High Court has directed the Jharkhand Bijli Vitaran Nigam Limited (for short 'JBVNL') to not cut electric supply to neighbourhoods during the festive season. 

These directions were passed by a division bench of CJ M.S. Ramachandra Rao and Justice Deepak Roshan in a plea complaining of power outages
 during the Sarhul festival in Ranchi on April 1st.

It cannot be disputed that electricity supply is an essential service in today's world. As the hot summer season has started, stoppage of electricity supply by JBVNL affects the lives of residents of the city more so that of old people, sick people, young children, pregnant women and students studying for exams. Also businesses need to be shutdown causing loss of revenue to the persons who run the businesses. It will also affect treatment of patients in private and public hospitals, the Court observed.

Advocate General submitted that the extreme measure of shutting down power supply was necessary to avoid injury to people who carry flag-poles in the processions at festivals like the Sarhul festival where there is risk of such poles coming into contact with electricity wires and that in the past (in the year 2000) 29 people had died in one such incident.

He stated that for the upcoming Sri Rama Navami festival on 6.4.2025 and also for Moharrum festival on 6.7.2025, power shut down needs to be done for the aforesaid reason.

Court questioned whether such extreme measures were necessary.

Merely because accidents might happen when one is travelling on the road or by train or in an airline, one does not stop people from using the road, train or airline. All measures must be taken to ensure such accidents do not happen, it stated.

Court thus observed that the state authorities, which give permission to such processions during festivals or otherwise, must fix an appropriate height/length of such poles/ flags so that they will not come into contact with the electrical wires laid down by the JBVNL.

It directed that the organizers of such processions must be informed that carrying of long poles/flags beyond the permitted height would not be permitted and that the norm needed to be enforced by the State through its Law Enforcement Agencies.

Therefore, pending further orders, it directed the respondents to immediately fix the height/length of poles/flags which can be carried in the procession and also immediately notify all organisers of processions of the same and ensure that all such organisers comply with this norm.

JBVNL was further directed not to shut down electricity supply in the manner it was done on 01.04.2025 in future unless such a measure is warranted due to some serious emergency.

Matter was listed on 9th April for further hearing. 

Click here to read order