MSEDCL files police complaint after underground cables cut three times in Wakad-Chandni Chowk highway work

Pune, November 2, 2026: Underground power cables have been damaged repeatedly during the highway widening work between Wakad Bridge and Chandni Chowk, raising concern over the safety of the power network. The Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited (MSEDCL) has objected to the way the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is carrying out the work.

According to MSEDCL, its underground cables were damaged during the work on October 16, 17 and 31. This caused power outages, inconvenience to consumers and financial loss to the company. The company alleges that despite repeated warnings, the contractor continued the road work without having the cables removed safely. MSEDCL has filed a complaint against the contractor at Bavdhan police station.

The company says power lines coming in the way of highway widening and the service road must be shifted only through the prescribed procedure. The agency doing the work must first obtain an estimate and approval from MSEDCL and complete the required formalities. Senior MSEDCL officials said NHAI has taken approval for work within the Pimpri Chinchwad Municipal Corporation limits, but has not taken such approval for the stretch falling within the Pune Municipal Corporation limits.

The three incidents of cable damage were as follows. On October 16, a cable supplying power from the 22kV Beverly feeder was damaged during the highway work. The next day, a cable of the 22kV Nia feeder was damaged near Bitwise Chowk. The third incident was recorded on October 31.

These incidents have made it difficult for MSEDCL to maintain uninterrupted power supply. The company estimates that repairs and restoration of supply have caused a loss of several lakh rupees. Consumers were inconvenienced by the outages, and the company's revenue was also affected.

MSEDCL has warned that serious problems could arise later if the road work is completed without proper planning for the 22kV high-tension and low-tension underground lines. If any of these cables develops a fault, a large number of consumers in Aundh, Baner and Mahalunge could lose power. The company has stressed that the location of the cables must be identified and the cables shifted safely before the road work proceeds.

MSEDCL also fears that cables now running along the roadside could end up in the middle of the widened road or be buried under the concrete surface. Finding faults and repairing them would then become extremely difficult. If the concrete road has to be dug up to reach a damaged cable, restoration could be delayed and power supply to lakhs of consumers could be affected. MSEDCL says infrastructure projects such as highways should be completed without harming essential services such as electricity supply.

The Baner branch office of MSEDCL, under its Aundh sub-division, lodged a formal complaint at Bavdhan police station on October 27. The complaint alleges that the contractor continued work despite earlier warnings and without having the underground power lines removed safely. MSEDCL has appealed to the police to take legal action against the contractor to prevent further damage to public property.