The alertness and courage of an outsourced security guard helped avert a potentially prolonged power disruption after two unidentified persons attempted to remove both blades of an isolator connected to the live electrical system at the 220 kV sub-station of Madhya Pradesh Power Transmission Company (MP Transco) in Shivpuri. The incident occurred at around 2 am on Sunday night, when security guard Surendra Kushwaha spotted two unidentified persons removing the isolator blades during a routine inspection of the substation yard. He immediately challenged them, but the duo escaped towards a forested area outside the substation, carrying the blades with them. On receiving information about the incident, Executive Engineer Ajit Verma, Assistant Engineer Dhirendra Chaurasia and Assistant Lineman Puran Singh reached the spot within around 15 minutes. The police also arrived after being alerted through Dial 112. A joint search operation was subsequently launched, during which both isolator blades were recovered from the forest. The necessary repair and restoration work was completed immediately, averting a potential disruption to the power transmission system.

 

The stolen blades were part of Main Bus-2 at the substation. This component plays a crucial role in transferring electrical load to another bus during maintenance work or emergencies. The blades are manufactured against special orders, and procuring replacements could have taken at least six months, potentially affecting the substation's operational reliability. Officials pointed out that attempting to remove equipment from an operational 220 kV electrical system could also have proved fatal for the perpetrators. The timely intervention of the security guard and the swift response of the technical team helped prevent a potentially serious incident and a prolonged disruption of power