Large parts of NWFP, tribal areas plunge into darkness
By Abdul Sami Paracha and Waseem Ahmad Shah
KOHAT/PESHAWAR, Oct 28: Terrorists blew up on Sunday night a high-tension power pylon in the tribal Bosti Khel area of the Kohat Frontier Region, plunging the southern district of the NWFP, including the tribal areas, into darkness.
Officials in Peshawar, meanwhile, told Dawn that a fire had broken out in the Sheikh Mohammadi grid station which affected the 500-KV power line, suspending power supply to a large area in Peshawar city and adjoining areas. Fire brigade officials were trying to put out the fire in the gird station located near the Kohat Road.
Dawn learnt that the power breakdown in Kohat had occurred after a powerful blast at around 7:30pm but Pesco officials did not confirm it till late night. Officials of the tribal administration also kept quite about the real causes of the breakdown.
The power supply was temporarily restored to some parts of Kohat from the Daud Khel area, but a large part of Kohat and Hangu, Bannu and Lakki Marwat districts and the Orakzai and Kurram tribal agencies, and other cities and towns were still in darkness.
Officials said that it would take at least a day to repair the tower after which electricity supply would be restored to all areas through Peshawar.
They said that the Daud Khel line could not bear the entire load and that was the reason only some parts of Kohat were being provided electricity.
Kohat grid officials said that a Wapda team had been sent to adjoining tribal areas to assess the damage to the high-tension line. The team was accompanied by a tribal force, which confirmed that the power pylon between Kohat and Darra Adam Khel had been blown up.
The Khasadar tribal force is looking for terrorists and strict action is likelyagainst the tribe on whose territory the blast had occurred under the collective responsibility clause of the Fontier Crimes Regulations.
Dawn has learnt that secret agencies knew since Friday that terrorists were planning to strike at a sensitive facility but they did not know that they planned to blow up an electricity tower in the semi-autonomous tribal area.
Meanwhile, spokesman for the Peshawar Electricity Supply Company Shaukat Afzal told Dawn that they were trying to provide electricity to the city from alternatives sources.
