With Independence Day around the corner, power discom BSES has cautioned city residents against flying kites near electricity installations and overhead wires, saying that it may cause tripping in their areas.
"The widespread use of metal-coated manjha (string), which is a good conductor of electricity, poses a great danger not only to the person flying the kite, but also to electricity supply in the area. Each year, there are several instances on both counts," a BSES spokesperson said.
Urging the public to refrain from using metal-coated strings near power installations, the discom said, "Even though disrupting power supply and causing damage to power equipment is punishable under the Electricity Act and the Delhi Police Act, little consideration is shown in this regard."
"The manjha used for flying kites contains metallic substances and in some cases, it is made of a thin metallic wire. When it comes in contact with live overhead wire, it causes tripping resulting in a blackout in the area fed by the affected line," he added.
According to estimates, tripping of one 33/66 kV line can disrupt power supply to over 10,000 residents in any area. Last year, BSES' area had reported 48 kite flying-related incidents.
"People should enjoy kite flying, but they should do it responsibly. Tripping related outages can take up to 2 hours to rectify. Not just electrical equipment get affected, the risk to life is a bigger danger due to reckless kite flying," the spokesman said.
