KARACHI: People brave another day of power breakdowns: Protests in many areas
By Mukhtar Alam
KARACHI, June 23: There was no respite from frequent and prolonged power failures for the third consecutive day, Thursday, as thousands of people, including children, senior citizens and patients, experienced some of the worst experiences of their life amid suffocating weather conditions. There were reports of enraged youths indulging in sabotage and arson in protest against the KESC’s indifferent attitude towards the situation.
While shopkeepers, traders and businessman community staged rallies, groups of angry youths lit bonfire on roads and pelted moving vehicles and shops with stones at Denso Hall, Boulton Market, Liaquatabad, Lyari, Sohrab Goth, F. B. Area, Malir and other parts of the city.
Already exhausted by the two days of hot blows in the persisting heat-wave, coupled with prolonged power failures and water shortage, people were expecting a relatively better situation on Wednesday-Thursday night. However, the KESC shattered all their hopes as it failed to improve the power supply situation. Rather, there were hours-long spells of power cut after every 10-20 minutes.
People scrambling for indoor shelter and relief were highly disappointed during the day, after the horrible night experiences. Be it home or a public place, KESC’s efficiency and performance remained a question everywhere.
It’s poor performance remained talk of the town. Citizens complained of indifference, on the part of the KESC and also influential figures and groups.
They were heard telling each other that politicians and other public representatives would not bother how a traumatic situation the people of Karachi were being made to face. None of them would come to the rescue of their electorates who, unfortunately and unwillingly, appeared domestic and commercial consumers of the utility. Those in power would not show any sympathy to the citizens already braving the hot and humid weather.
A resident of Gulshan-i-Iqbal’s Block 13/D/III said that electricity went off for some six hours, from 9pm to 3am. “I returned home at 1.00am only to find the whole area in darkness,” Abdul Aziz said, adding that everyone in the family was in distress. Residents of the whole complex (Nauman Complex) had come out of their apartments to escape the suffocation inside to spend some time in the open. Some women had to stay inside their apartments trying hard to soothe their panicked children who were literally crying, moaned Mr Aziz.
Plight of other people living in other parts of the city was also no much different.
Power failure in Gulistan-i-Jauher’s Block 20 occurred at 9pm on Thursday night and continued till around 2pm. The area again suffered another 45-minute breakdown after just 15 minutes. Though, the supply was restored, there was extreme fluctuation. Similar situation was reported by the residents of blocks 19, 20 and 22 of Federal B Area.
After a five-hour-long breakdown that was overcome at 2.30am, intermittent power cuts continued in the area till late in the night. In blocks 7, 9, 16, and 14 of F B Area, three to four hours long breakdowns during the day and a couple of another few hours power cut between sunset and midnight were reported. In block 15 of the same area, power went off at 11.30pm on Wednesday-Thursday night for about four hours and again at 6.15am in the morning. The supply was restored at 1.15pm but only for half-an-hour. Till 6pm, the supply had not been restored.
Talking about KESC’s response to consumer’s distress calls, many people said that the power utility staff appeared hardly accessible. Complaints centres did not at all respond at most of the complainants. Some dejected complainants who visited their respective centres, said that the staff sitting there would not even pick the receiver of the constantly ringing phones. “This is the height of their indifference to the consumers agony!” a very disturbed man deplored.
Reports about widespread breakdowns were received from Gulistan-i-Jauher, Federal B Area, North Karachi, Quaidabad, Jamshed Road, Landhi, Saddar, Garden East, Surjani Town, PECHS, Lyari, and Gulshan-i-Iqbal.
A resident of Sector 11-H, North Karachi, said that power went off at around 3.00pm on Thursday for over two hours. A woman resident from Phase VI, DHA said that KESC’s failures were proving horrible. Frequent interruptions occurred during the day till 5.00pm, she added.
Another resident of Sector 15-A/5 Al-Erum complex said that there had been repeated power failures during the day, whereas the supply was suspended at 8.00pm again. The caller claimed that voltage fluctuation was an added problem which damaged electrical equipment.
Residents of Saudia Colony, Khokhrapar and Ranchhor Line said that power failures had become a routine matter in their localities for many days. “The supply is discontinued for three to four hours first in the morning and then in the afternoon. While the supply is restored, voltage keeps fluctuating.”
A resident of Jamshed Road said that the area remained without power during whole night for several days forcing men, women and children to spend sleepless nights outside their houses. Children and patients appeared worst-affected. “Their pain and helplessness at times provoke youth of the area who resort to agitation.”
Power went off in certain areas of Malir Cantonment and Orangi Town for several hours and could not be restored till late in the night. The affected consumers, after failing to reach the concerned KESC people, kept calling Dawn to seek some sort of help.
Most of the complainants were of the view that the KESC had become so much insensitive that it had stopped justifying any of the hundreds of breakdowns occurring elsewhere in the city every day. Those at the helm of the affairs would not even comment on the situation.
“Our life has become extremely miserable, and the only those responsible are the KESC people who, despite collecting a huge amount of extortion money under the heads of undue taxes, charges, extra-charges, fees, etc. with the energy consumption bills, would not hear even our SOS,” said an angry youth abusing the KESC staff outside a complaint centre in F B Area.
KARACHI, June 23: There was no respite from frequent and prolonged power failures for the third consecutive day, Thursday, as thousands of people, including children, senior citizens and patients, experienced some of the worst experiences of their life amid suffocating weather conditions. There were reports of enraged youths indulging in sabotage and arson in protest against the KESC’s indifferent attitude towards the situation.
