LUCKNOW, April 18 -- The Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) is managing nearly 2.5 lakh streetlights with just around 450 maintenance workers, leaving each worker responsible for around 555 streetlights. This severe manpower gap has emerged as the key reason behind widespread outages across the city. LMC officials confirmed that the existing workforce struggles to keep pace with complaints pouring in daily from multiple localities. As a result, several stretches across the state capital continue to remain poorly lit for weeks and even months. Manoj Prabhat, chief engineer (mechanical and electrical), LMC, said that the civic body tries to address complaints daily but admitted that the scale of operations is a challenge. "We currently maintain around 2.5 lakh streetlights with some 450 people. We plan to recruit 150 workers to strengthen maintenance," he said. A ground check by Hindustan Times found that in several areas, 10 to 20 streetlights on a single stretch were non-functional. In many cases, these lights have been defunct for over a month, while some have not been repaired for more than three months, indicating prolonged delays in maintenance. One of the most affected stretches is the nearly 2-km road from Munshipuliya intersection to Sector 25, where streetlights on around 15 poles were non-operational. The lack of illumination has left both the main road and adjoining service lanes in darkness, forcing commuters to depend entirely on vehicle headlights. In Gomti Nagar Extension, a 1-km stretch near Sharda Apartments has remained poorly lit for over a month. The area houses a school, a private hospital and multiple residential societies, yet streetlights have not been repaired, raising concerns among residents. Similar conditions prevail near the police headquarters in the same locality. The problem is not limited to new areas alone. On the stretch from Power House intersection to Ashiana police station, multiple streetlights were dysfunctional during a recent night visit. Sachitanand, a resident of Gomti Nagar Extension, said the absence of functional streetlights has begun to affect their daily routines. Many have stopped stepping out after dark due to safety concerns. Corporator Amit Chowdhury of Mahatma Gandhi ward acknowledged that complaints related to dysfunctional streetlights are being received regularly, even in his ward where various areas remain affected. He said the issue has become widespread and requires urgent intervention....