The consistency with which the power supply is constantly fluctuating all the time has ensured that several of our office computers have been fried, with many more on the borderline. After running from office to office, placing new electrical wires and making numerous telephone calls to the control room and its different offices, the fluctuation persist, and no one can quite provide a convincing reason as to the cause of the erratic power supply. So for now we have to be content with the explanation that since our office is located towards the end of the line from where our sub-station transformer is positioned, we will continue to face power fluctuations.
This experience has naturally raised several questions for me and it really put the status of the power supply and the Naga concept of customers-service into perspective. I wonder if this is the kind of development we really wish for, leave alone the attitude of those who are actually in a position to be the difference because of the positions they hold, whether it is the line-man or the decision-maker. The common experience we have had is one in which we are constantly been told by the department staff, that the fault lies with us, rather than actually making a genuine effort to rectify the predicament. This oversight quite clearly reveals the general pattern in which government departments usually relates to the public.
It is quite apparent that our office is not the only one faced with the electric dilemma. There will be many more households, businesses, enterprises and even offices, not just in our colony, but in other colonies, and not just in Dimapur but in other Naga towns and villages that face the acute problem of erratic power supply, and fluctuation problems. I guess its not just computers that are being fried, but other electronic gadgets as well. The pressures and inconveniences caused by this fluctuation is felt more in our office because of the responsibility it has in meeting with everyday deadlines and creating a workable environment.
Erratic power supply or the absence of an efficient and standardized service supply has caused problems not just for electronic gadgets but more importantly it hinders the ability of people to work efficiently and productively; and in-effect contribute to the development of the society. In the past, the public discourse around electricity has been confined to the area of normal day to day necessities such as lights, fans or the air-conditioner. But today the context is quite different, and the issue of electricity has to be placed within the broader ambit of enhancing the quality of human life. The access to electricity is not a privilege; it is a necessity.
Considering the importance of electricity as a public utility service, it is of absolute importance for the department to ensure not just the supply of consistent electric power but to ensure that the services also meet high standards of efficiency and responsibility. Rude behavior, sheer laziness, complacency and indifferent negligence must not have any room if the department is to be respected and trusted by the public. In the end, it is not just about computers getting fried or about power fluctuations limiting human productivity, it is at core the issues of responsible governance and the ability of the public service to sufficiently and effectively meet the needs of the people.
However, unless genuine and deliberate decisions are made to transform the attitude and working habits of the public service, dilemmas such as the fried computer will continue to exist in different forms.
