March 14, 2007	Wednesday	Safar 24, 1428

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KASUR, March 13: A high-power transmission transformer worth Rs100 million was burnt when the Sarfraz Nagar grid station caught fire late Monday night.

Following the fire which broke out at 11:45pm, power supply to a large area of Phoolnagar was suspended.

Fire brigades from Kasur, Okara and Lahore reached the spot and controlled the fire in five hours.

Power supply was restored on Tuesday morning.

Wapda authorities have formed a committee to ascertain the reason for fire.

BREACH: A 15-foot wide breach occurred in Rajbah Niaz Baig canal on Tuesday afternoon, creating panic among people of Mucchalwal village, Phoolnagar.

The breach inundated standing crops over 10 acres.

Dozens of volunteers, including Rana Muhammad Iqbal, Chaudhry M Ramzan and women, reached the spot when they heard of the breach through announcements at village mosques. Their timely action saved the village and wheat crop spreading over hundreds of acres.

Villagers have accused the irrigation department officials of negligence. They said the department had turned a deaf ear to their repeated complaints in this regard.

Pattoki Kissan Board secretary-general Rana Imtiaz Haq Khan has demanded an inquiry into the matter.