Special Chief Secretary (Energy) K. Vijayanand has stressed the need for creating awareness of electrical hazards, saying that such incidents cause a significant number of fatalities and property damages every year.
“Never underestimate the hazards associated with electricity,” he advised the consumers while inaugurating the National Electrical Safety Week campaign organised by the Directorate of Electrical Safety here on Sunday.
Mr. Vijayanand said accidents involving electricity happen frequently due to ignorance or negligence on the part of the users, be it in domestic, industrial, commercial and agriculture sectors. “Damaged equipment and worn-out insulations may lead to electrocution, fire and even explosions. Accidents may happen if those handling the damaged equipment are not trained,” he said.
Coming into contact with live wires, ineffective earthing, snapped conductors, improper grounding of equipment and their accessories, loose plugs, placing flammable material near electrical equipment, presence of water and wet surfaces and installations made by untrained workers may cause accidents and this can be avoided with a little bit of caution, he said.
Mr. Vijayanand said the supervisory officers must ensure use of safety gears such as gloves and boots by technicians working in the power utilities and industrial establishments. Repair works should be carried out only after line clearances are given, he said.
G. Vijaya Lakshmi, Chief Electrical Inspector to Government, listed out the norms to be followed to prevent electrical accidents.
Deputy Secretary (energy) B.A.V.P. Kumar Reddy, AP-Genco Director (hydel) M.V.V. Satyanarayana, Central Discom CMD J. Padma Janardhan Reddy and Directors B. Ramesh Prasad (EPDCL) and Subba Raju (SPDCL) were present on the occasion.
