Nepal Electricity Authority has increased in the power outage hours up to nine-and-a-half hours a day. The new schedule will be effective from Friday.

NEA said the increasing demand, decreasing water level and the damage caused by the earthquake on hydropowers had forced it to increase the load-shedding hours.

The increase in the load-shedding hours is likely to further hit the commoners who are heavily dependent on electric cookers and induction stoves for cooking due to the shortage of cooking gas triggered by the Indian unofficial blockade.

With the revised load shedding schedule, there will be 58 hours of power cut per week. Earlier, there was 44 hours of power cut a week.