10 April 2004	Saturday	19 Safar 1425

KARACHI, April 9: The transmission and distribution network of the Karachi Electric Supply Corporation broke down in many localities of the city on Friday.

KESC consumers calling from different localities wondered why the power utility had done nothing to upgrade its transmission and distribution network during winter when load on it had been low.

They expressed apprehension that if the power breakdowns occurred at this frequency in the beginning of summer the situation would be very bad as the year progressed.

Officials at the Pakistan Meteorological Department said that the maximum and minimum temperatures ranged between 35 and 24 degrees Centigrade. Humidity was recorded at 40 per cent on Friday, they added.

Sources in the power utility said that the KESC centralized complaint centre had received complaints of power failures from Nazimabad, Gulshan-i-Iqbal, North Nazimabad, Korangi, Federal B Area, North Karachi, Abbysinia Line, Gulistan-i-Jauhar, New Karachi and Saddar.

An angry complainant, Anees Ahmad called Dawn from New Karachi and said that he wanted to protest the high-handedness of the KESC staff in the strongest possible words. "I called the telephone number of the localized complaint centre so many times that I now remember it by heart. It was engaged whenever I called. What is the point of making this number public if it remains in the use of KESC officials all the time?" he wondered.

A resident of North Nazimabad, Block A, said his locality, as well as Block L, had been without electricity for many hours on Friday morning. He said that he had called the centralized complaint centre, better known as 118, to register his complaint. "Apparently, no action has been taken on our complaint as we are still without electricity," he told Dawn at around 8.30pm.

A caller from PECHS, Block 6, said that frequent power shutdowns had forced them to stay awake for many hours the previous night. A resident of Saddar told Dawn that his area had faced at least three power shutdowns on Friday.

A complainant from Garden East, near the Jamaat Khana, said his locality had faced two power breakdowns the previous night and morning. From Gulistan-i-Jauhar, Block 17, a caller told Dawn that his locality had faced a couple of breakdowns since morning.

Another resident from the same area said: "Our localized KESC complaint centre is just across the street. Area residents walk to the complaint centre to find out when the power supply would be restored.

When we went there, the staff told us that loadshedding was being carried out. We do not know why the KESC does not announce in advance when it will carry out load shedding," he remarked.

A resident of Gulistan-i-Jauhar told Dawn that his locality lost electricity at around 11 in the morning. "The power supply was restored at 1pm. The KESC installed new meters in our locality some time back. These meters run very fast all the time. It is beyong me why these meters run so fast when we remain without electricity for hours," he said.