June 24, 2008	Tuesday	Jamadi-us-Sani 19, 1429

HYDERABAD, June 23: The Additional Sessions Judge-VII Hyderabad here on Monday freed 49 brick kiln workers who were produced before the court by Tandojam police in response to an earlier court order issued on an application of a kiln worker, Khem Chand Kolhi on Saturday.

Kolhi had approached the Society for the Protection of the Rights of the Child (SPARC) on the ground that he and 49 other workers were being subjected to forced labour at a kiln owned by Daraz Khan in Tando Hyder within the area of Tandojam police.

SPARC, through its legal adviser Naseer Leghari and Shahzado Saleem, filed an application before sessions court under sections 22-A and 22-B CrPC, praying the court to ensure recovery of kiln workers. The court issued notice to Tandojam police to produce the labourers.

The applicant claimed that movement of labourers had been banned by employees of kiln owner, who was not paying them food and medical expenses and, on the contrary, claiming outstanding dues against the labourers. The police raided the kiln and recovered the workers and produced them before the court. The workers included 23 children, nine women and 17 men. The applicant said that children were compelled to work round the clock without taking care of their health.

The workers, along with SPARC’s protection manager Kashif Bajeer, after having been freed by the court, staged a protest demonstration outside press club.

They said that they were vulnerable members of the society. They said that they were not provided food and clothing by owner who is claiming dues against them.

POWERHOUSE: Jamshoro thermal power house authorities have obtained approval for closing down the Japanese unit-I for one week amid a fault developed in its air pre-heater.

Currently only two units of power house are working, generating around 305 megawatts of electricity.

Chinese unit-2 and Japanese-I are now in working condition. Chinese unit-I generator had developed a major fault after a fire incident and power house management had sought assistance from Chinese firm’s local representatives in the court for its overhauling.

Two more units — Japanese unit-1 and Chinese unit-III — stopped functioning last Thursday due to operational faults. On June 20 the authorities managed to synchronise Chinese unit-3 that had developed fault in its turbine.

Due to non-functioning of unit-1 and unit-2, a deficit of 225 megawatts of electricity is being caused to national grid during on-going energy crisis in the country. Until now they were generating 125 megawatts and 160 megawatts respectively.

Power house sources said that air pre-heater of unit-1 needs major repair and cleaning and they were hopeful that they would be able to start it on Monday evening but they didn’t succeed. “It’s a perfect unit but since proper maintenance is not being done such faults are becoming a matter of daily routine”, said a power house employee.

He said that air pre-heater serves as an important instrument in passage of air which is re-used in the unit. “There are deposits of sulphur contents in its elements which would now be cleansed”, he claimed.

No official of power house is ready to speak out their mind about the units’ existing condition and their generation output.

Chinese unit-2 had gone out of order on May 10, and would take at least two and half month as correspondence with representatives of Chinese firm, which had commissioned the project, are under way.