The complete blackout in the district which lasted a week from February 6 to February 13 had been caused by incessant snowfall.
Over 18 telephone exchanges in the high-altitude Lahaul-Spiti district of Himachal Pradesh, which kept running during last week's total power blackout with the help of generators, have exhausted their stock of diesel and require additional supplies for the rest of winter.
The complete blackout in the district which lasted a week from February 6 to February 13 had been caused by incessant snowfall due to which electric wires had broken at several points, forcing telephone exchanges in the area to frunction
with the help of generators.
However, power was restored in the district on February 13 last after the repair of broken wires.
Telephone exchange in Udaipur and Killar divisions were provided 3100 litres of diesel for the winter period, Sub-Divisional officer (SDO), BSNL, Lahaul, KS Verma said.
Due to continous use of generator during the period the reserve has depleted and all the exchanges require additional supplies to meet the needs for the rest of winter.
Winter in the district, also known as the 'cold desert', generally extends upto March end to mid-April.
There are 19 telephone exchanges in the Lahaul-Spiti district. This includes one at Kibber which is situated at a height of 4205 metres, located at the highest point (height)in Asia.
BSNL SDO of Spiti Gopal Chauhan said the seven telephone exchanges in Spiti sub-division have also run out of their diesel reserves due to continuous running of generators last week.
SDO Lahaul K S Verma said he has informed Telecom Divisional Manager (TDM), Kullu about depletion of winter reserves and has sought additional supply for the rest of winter.
TDM Kullu Vijay Prakash said he has taken up the matter with the district administration.
Deputy commissioner Ritesh Chauhan told PTI that all help would be provided to the BSNL to keep the telephone communication network intact in the district.
SDO Spiti Gopal Chauhan said he has asked the exchange to arrange additional stock of diesel on credit basis with petrol pump or other government departments.
Lahaul-Spiti, the largest district in the state in terms of area, faces regular snow in winter. Like previous years, this time too the district is cut off from rest of the world by road due to closure of Rohtang pass, the door to the district in mid-November.
Night temperature in the district is varying between minus 10 degrees Celsius to minus 15 deg C nowdays.
In such a difficult situation, telephone is the potent source of linkage of the district with the outside world.
All the exchanges in the area are provided fuel stocks before the start of winter to meet exigencies.
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