India, June 3 -- Lucknow A major technical glitch brought the toll-free power helpline, 1912, of Madhyanchal Vidyut Vitran Nigam Limited (MVVNL) to a halt for nearly five hours on Sunday, crippling consumer grievance redressal in 19 districts, including Lucknow, Ayodhya, and Barabanki. The disruption left many users unable to register complaints regarding power cuts, low voltage, transformer failures, and other issues.

The helpline, which typically receives 15,000 to 20,000 calls daily, remained inaccessible from around 8 am to 1 pm on Sunday. According to MVVNL officials, the fault originated in a telecom network on which the helpline system relies entirely.

The lack of contingency planning for telecom disruptions has raised eyebrows a...