Why Assam Still Struggles With Power Cuts While Urban India Moves on

In Assam, power cuts remain a part of daily life. Whether it’s a scorching summer afternoon or a stormy evening, residents are all too familiar with the sudden silence of a fan slowing down or the frustration of a Wi-Fi router disconnecting mid-stream. For many, it’s not just an inconvenience, it’s a routine part of living. In cities like Mumbai, Delhi, or Bengaluru, however, a power cut lasting even a few minutes is so rare that it becomes the talk of the town. There, uninterrupted electricity is an expectation; here, it’s a hope.

So why does a state like Assam continue to struggle with providing round-the-clock electricity, while India’s metro cities enjoy seamless 24x7 power supply?

To understand that, we need to look at the role of the Assam Power Distribution Company Limited (APDCL), the state-run utility responsible for delivering electricity across Assam. Over the years, APDCL has made some progress. There was a time, just a few years ago, when many parts of the state would go without power for several hours at a stretch, sometimes even through the night. Those long-duration blackouts have thankfully become less frequent today. But power cuts have not disappeared. They still occur regularly, often without notice, affecting both urban and rural areas alike.

One of the primary reasons is Assam’s limited electricity generation capacity. The state simply does not produce enough power on its own to meet rising demand. As per recent data, peak electricity demand in Assam reached nearly 2,880 megawatts in 2024 and is projected to cross 2,950 megawatts by 2026. This demand spikes even higher during heatwaves, when air conditioning and cooling systems put additional pressure on the grid. On one such day, APDCL was able to supply just 2,684 megawatts against a demand of 2,809 megawatts, leaving a noticeable gap.

Local generation, largely handled by APGCL, is limited to between 320 to 420 megawatts. The rest is filled through power purchased from central government agencies or on the open market via expensive short-term deals. This means that the majority of electricity consumed in Assam is essentially borrowed. When any disruption occurs in this delicate chain, whether due to demand spikes elsewhere or supply issues, Assam is among the first to face power cuts.

But power availability is only one side of the problem. The other is infrastructure. Much of Assam’s electricity network- its poles, overhead wires, transformers, and substations is outdated and increasingly fragile. During heavy rains or thunderstorms, it’s common for sections of the grid to be shut down preemptively as a safety measure. In May 2025, for instance, a severe storm knocked out power in large swathes of Guwahati like Uzan Bazar, Silpukhuri, and Bhangagarh for more than 12 hours.

Just a day ago, on Monday night, heavy rains once again lashed Guwahati. Areas like Lachit Nagar, South Sarania and Ulubari were plunged into darkness from late night till early morning- nearly six hours of outage. Residents had to wake up to dead inverters, drained batteries, and sweltering rooms as a result.

Adding to the chaos are the tangled webs of internet and cable TV wires carelessly strung along APDCL poles. In June 2025, such negligence led to a fire in a low-tension cable box near Uzan Bazar, sparking panic and a localized blackout. These ad hoc additions not only pose fire hazards but also make maintenance work riskier and slower.

Until a few years ago, long outages were routine. People would stock candles and charge backup batteries, knowing the power could go any time, for hours. While those days are largely behind us, shorter outages are still common. Residents frequently complain of “power interruptions” lasting from a few minutes to over an hour, often happening multiple times a day. APDCL labels them as routine maintenance or temporary load regulation during high demand periods or due to rain. But for consumers, the effect is the same: disruption.

Customer service is another sore point. When the power goes out, consumers are often left in the dark, both literally and figuratively. Information is scarce. Helplines mostly go unanswered, online complaint systems do exist, but follow-ups are inconsistent. In smaller towns and rural areas, the situation is even more unpredictable. Frustrated residents share stories of frequent voltage drops, delayed fault repairs, and poor communication from the electricity board.

In public forums and social media threads, Assam’s electricity woes are a regular subject of frustration and satire. A Reddit thread from earlier this year titled “APDCL outage bingo” mocked the predictability of power cuts during school exams, IPL matches, and thunderstorms.

Compare this to cities like Mumbai, where private power companies such as Adani Electricity and Tata Power run the show. These companies function like service providers rather than bureaucratic bodies. They invest heavily in advanced infrastructure, including underground cables, real-time fault detection, automated grid systems, and mobile alerts. Their goal is simple: no power cuts. And when outages do occur, usually due to external causes, they are communicated clearly and resolved quickly. While residents in these cities do pay more for their electricity, often 30–50% higher than what’s charged in Assam, they get near-perfect reliability in return.

That’s not to say Assam isn’t trying to catch up. The state government has recently approved policies aimed at attracting private investment in power generation. A new 3,400 MW thermal power plant is being planned in Dhubri, alongside a 250 MW solar battery storage facility to release stored energy during peak hours. These are long-term projects, and they offer hope for the future.

On the distribution side, APDCL has announced plans to replace exposed conductors with insulated ones, set up ten new substations across Guwahati to ease load on the grid, and improve outage monitoring systems to make repairs faster and more targeted. A new Time-of-Day tariff is also set to launch in the 2025–26 fiscal year, offering lower electricity rates during solar hours and higher rates during peak hours, in an effort to balance usage patterns.

These steps are encouraging, but they are years away from delivering lasting change. And even when new power sources come online, the question remains: will the existing grid be able to deliver that power efficiently and reliably to homes and businesses across Assam? Without serious upgrades in distribution infrastructure and a cultural shift within APDCL toward service-focused delivery, the state risks repeating the same old cycle: more power, but the same old problems.

There’s no denying that things have improved. Assam no longer plunges into all-night/day darkness like it once did. The challenges are many, but so are the efforts underway. The day when a power cut becomes “breaking news” here too may not be far after all, if the will to change is stronger than the excuses not to.

Also Read: Guwahati's Power Woes Amid Heavy Rain: APDCL's Performance Called Into Question