People pay Rs 20 per hour to charge mobile phones in Odisha's cyclone-hit Bhadrak
Bhadrak (Odisha), Oct 27: People in many villages in Basudevpur block of Odisha’s Bhadrak district are seen making beelines before vehicles carrying power generators to charge their mobile phone batteries as the electricity supply has been disrupted by cyclone Dana.
People are forced to pay Rs 20 per hour for recharge of one mobile phone battery and Rs 300 to lift ground water to overhead tanks in houses, said Santilata Panda, sarpanch of Bishnupur panchayat of Bhadrak district.
The local tent houses and other traders who have petrol and diesel-run generator sets are providing the paid services to the people in the locality, she said.
“I have paid Rs 20 per hour to charge my mobile phone. We request the administration to restore the power supply as soon as possible,” said a youth of Nuagaon village of the district.
Meanwhile, Tata Power, which provides electricity across Odisha, said that electricity has been restored in around 92 per cent of the affected areas and it has deployed additional teams to accelerate full restoration.
Engineers, linemen, and support staff are working closely with government agencies and local authorities, the company said in a statement.
It said that teams are working round the clock to restore damaged infrastructure, deploy mobile substations and repair power lines and crucial electrical equipment to expedite the recovery of critical infrastructure amidst blocked roads and waterlogged areas.
Severe cyclonic storm Dana struck the eastern coast in the early hours of Friday, triggering torrential rain and high-speed winds that uprooted trees and electric poles and caused significant damage to infrastructure and crops in Odisha.
The cyclone made landfall between Bhitarkanika in Kendrapara and Dhamra in Bhadrak district.
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Sujit Nair raises concerns over speculation of DMK-AIADMK understanding to block TVK
Chennai: Journalist and political commentator Sujit Nair has expressed concern over speculation that the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam could explore a post-poll understanding to prevent Vijay-led Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam from forming the government in Tamil Nadu.
In a social media post, Sujit Nair said the election verdict in Tamil Nadu reflected a clear public demand for political change and argued that the mandate should be respected irrespective of political preferences.
Referring to reports and political discussions surrounding a possible understanding between the DMK and AIADMK, he said he hoped such developments remained only speculative conversations and did not turn into reality.
Nair stated that if such an alliance were to take shape, it would raise serious questions about ideological politics in the country. He said TVK had emerged through a democratic electoral process and that the legitimacy to govern in a parliamentary democracy comes from the people’s verdict.
According to him, attempts to prevent an electoral winner from forming the government through unexpected political arrangements may be constitutionally valid, but many people could view them as politically opportunistic.
He further said that such a move could particularly affect the political image of the DMK, which has historically projected itself around ideology, social justice and opposition politics. Nair said that in ideological terms, the DMK appeared closer to TVK than to the AIADMK, and joining hands with its long-time political rival only to remain in power could weaken its broader political narrative.
He added that the same questions would apply to the AIADMK as well, as the party had spent decades positioning itself against the DMK and such an arrangement could create discomfort among its cadre and supporters.
Drawing a comparison with Maharashtra politics in 2019, Nair said he had expressed similar views when the Shiv Sena formed an alliance with the Indian National Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party after the Assembly elections.
He said post-poll alliances between long-standing political rivals often create a public perception that ideology and electoral mandates become secondary when political power equations come into play.
Nair also said such developments increase public cynicism towards politics and reinforce the belief among voters that ideology is often sidelined after elections.
He maintained that the Tamil Nadu verdict was emphatic and said respecting both the spirit and substance of the mandate was important for the credibility of democratic politics.
