Diwali Blow: 8-Hour Power Cuts Threaten Surat Industries

SURAT : With Diwali orders piling up, factory deadlines tightening and thousands of businesses racing to secure payments before the festive season, an eight-hour power cut threatens to bring South...

Dakshin Gujarat Vij Company Limited (DGVCL) has announced power cuts on designated industrial feeders from 4 pm to midnight, citing a shortage of available electricity amid rising demand and constraints in power generation. The arrangement will continue until the situation normalises.

Ashok Jirawala, president of the Southern Gujarat Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SGCCI), called the decision a devastating blow to industries at the busiest time of the business calendar.

With Diwali approaching, industries need to complete orders, dispatch goods and recover payments from the market. This sudden decision effectively strangles MSME units and ruins their festive season,” Jirawala said.

He added that he had not witnessed such a drastic, across-the-board decision in his 26 years of experience.