The transmission lines of the coal-based thermal power plant at Harduaganj in Aligarh tripped, which led to major disruption of railway traffic.

Following this, the transmission lines of Power Grid Corporation of India Ltd (PGCIL) and Uttar Pradesh Power Corporation Limited (UPPCL) also tripped, leading to disruption of power supply to the railway traction around 8 am. This resulted in a major power crisis mostly in the western parts of the state.

“Dense fog in the region has been stated to be the reason behind the tripping of the power lines,” an UPPCL official said.

In Aligarh, the railway engineers detected fault in the overhead power supply system. “We have made alternative arrangements to supply power to the overhead lines of the railways. The disruption, however, created a jam on the tracks as a number of trains were stranded,” a railway official said.

About 40 trains, including Rajdhani Express and Shatabdi Express, were stranded due to the power failure. Railway officials said most of the trains were stranded at different stations between Tundla and New Delhi.

The situation turned from bad to worse when members of Bharat Kisan Union (BKU) staged a dharna on the railway track at Khurja station.