MUMBAI, July 9 -- After spending nearly five days without electricity, drinking water, mobile connectivity and internet, thousands of residents across Vasai and Nalasopara waded through waist-deep floodwaters on Wednesday to stage protests against the local administration, demanding immediate restoration of electricity and essential services. Residents said several localities had remained without power for more than 40 hours after power supply was snapped as a precaution against electrocution in inundated areas. While the measure was taken for safety, prolonged outages left thousands without drinking water as pumps stopped functioning, while drained inverters, dead mobile phones and loss of internet connectivity further compounded their ordeal. Among the worst-affected areas were Evershine City, Sativali in Vasai East, Dindayal Nagar, Anand Nagar in Vasai West, Tulinj, Santosh Bhavan in Nalasopara East and Yashwant Nagar in Virar West. With large parts of the city still waterlogged, residents blocked roads in protest, accusing authorities of failing to respond despite repeated complaints. Nikhesh Kuleakar, a Shiv Sena (UBT) member, said over 3,000 residents in his area had been affected. "Power cuts have crippled our lives. We have been calling the electricity office and corporator Kajal Deshmukh for drainage cleaning for four days, but no one has turned up," he alleged. Residents claimed electricity supply in Tulinj was restored only after the protest and raasta roko, following intervention by the Tulinj police, who called electricity department staff to the spot. LS Telange, a Shiv Sena (Shinde faction) member, alleged that officials had not responded to repeated calls over the past four days. Officials said power restoration was delayed as the Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company's main substation at Suncity in Vasai West was submerged, while several transformers, feeder pillars and underground cables were also flooded. "We lost power around 2am on Monday and it had still not been restored through Tuesday evening. Our inverter is completely drained, our mobile phones have run out of charge, and knee-deep water outside our house has left us stranded indoors," said Aneesh Marathe, a resident of Tulinj in Vasai. Meanwhile, the VVCMC has sought urgent assistance from the state government to restore electricity supply and cellphone networks. At a review meeting on Tuesday, chief secretary Rajesh Aggarwal held discussions with VVCMC commissioner Prithviraj BP. Speaking in the Assembly, CM Devendra Fadnavis said electricity supply had been deliberately suspended as a safety measure....