Half of India left without power after massive breakdown July 31, 2012 - 16:28 AMT PanARMENIAN.Net - Hundreds of millions of people have been left without electricity in northern and eastern India after a massive power breakdown, BBC News said. More than half the country has been left without power after three grids collapsed - one of them for the second day running. Hundreds of trains have come to a standstill and hospitals are running on backup generators. In eastern India, around 200 miners have been trapped underground. They have been moved to an area where they have access to fresh air and are not in immediate danger. In Delhi, Metro services were halted and staff evacuated trains. Some trains have started running again, although a full service is not expected for many hours. The breakdowns in the northern, eastern, and north-eastern grids mean around 600m people have been affected. A failure on the northern grid on Monday, July 30 caused severe disruption and travel chaos across northern India. The power minister said some states might have been taking too much electricity. India's demand for electricity has soared in recent years as its economy has grown but its power infrastructure has been unable to meet the growing needs. Partner news  Top stories Among its provisions are bans on child marriage and the traditional practice of selling and buying women to settle disputes. Jorge Rafael Videla, an austere former army commander, led Argentina during the bloodiest days of its Dirty War dictatorship. According to the United Nations, April was Iraq's bloodiest month for almost five years, with 712 people killed. Reports suggest the rebel fighters may have tried to blow up the walls of the prison, which holds some 4,000 inmates.   Partner news |  Latest news Brad Pitt’s “World War Z” to open Moscow Film Fest  The fest will feature retrospectives of films by Bernardo Bertolucci and Costa Gavras, as well as a program devoted to Dutch cinema.Wrekin Hill picks up John Malkovich’s “Siberian Education” Based on the novel by Nicolai Lilin, the film is set in the ghetto of Soviet Russia and follows 2 boys who are members of a gang of exiled Siberians.EU says concerned over human rights record in Russia The European Union said it would closely watch developments affecting non-governmental organizations in Russia.John Lennon’s guitar auctioned for $408,000 The custom-made instrument, built in 1966 by the VOX company, was bought by an unidentified U.S. buyer in New York. |
