The People's Majlis was forced to postpone its scheduled morning sitting on Tuesday after a sudden electrical outage disrupted power supply across central Malé, temporarily knocking out broadcast systems, electronic voting terminals, and parliamentary committee chambers.
The Speaker's office announced the postponement shortly before the scheduled 09:00 am gavel, delaying parliamentary deliberations until 11:00 am as technical engineering teams worked to restore stable municipal power and verify internal electrical backups.
Grid disruption in administrative district
The power interruption occurred during the morning peak load period, affecting government ministries, administrative offices, and commercial establishments situated across Henveiru and Maafannu wards.
Utility provider State Electric Company Limited confirmed that the blackout was triggered by a technical fault on a primary high-voltage distribution feeder cable connecting generation hubs to central transformer substations:
"The parliamentary sitting was rescheduled to 11:00 am due to an electrical failure affecting the People’s Majlis complex and surrounding administrative facilities. Sessions resumed once system diagnostics were confirmed," the Majlis Secretariat informed lawmakers in an official notice.
STELCO emergency response teams isolated the faulty underground distribution segment and rerouted supply through secondary feeder loops, restoring power to the parliamentary complex and nearby streets within two hours.
Order of business and legislative debate
Following the restoration of power and chamber ventilation, the Majlis convened under the leadership of the Speaker to address an active legislative calendar, including debate on the government’s proposed Criminal Asset Recovery Bill and ministerial questioning sessions.
Lawmakers raised concerns regarding recurring power distribution trips across the capital's aging underground grid, calling on STELCO to expedite preventive cable upgrades and strengthen automated backup generators at critical state institutions. STELCO assured that engineering investigations are underway to prevent similar feeder trips.
