December 28, 2008	Sunday	Zilhaj 29, 1429

MANSEHRA, Dec 27: Hundreds of people staged a protest demonstration against the prolonged loadshedding and blocked the Karakorum Highway for three hours near Battagram.

The protesters also set a 72-hour deadline for ending power outages and warned of dire consequences if their demand was not met.

The protesters holding banners and placards marched through various roads and reached the KKH and burnt tyres on the road blocking it for every kind of traffic.

Leaders of the protesters including Naeemullah, district president of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, and others warned Peshawar Electricity Supply Company (Pesco) and government to end the prolonged and unscheduled loadshedding otherwise they would adopt another way of protest. They said that power remained suspended in the area almost all the day.

They said that it was unjust that despite payments of huge utility bills, consumers were deprived of power and even no loadshedding schedule was issued.

They said that because of prolonged power outages their businesses were at the verge of collapse and students could not get prepare for their examinations.

They gave 72-hour deadline to the government for ending loadshedding and warned of dire consequences including targeting power installations in the area if their demand was not met.

The frequent and prolonged power outages had affected daily life in Mansehra, Battagram and Balakot, they said.

Khan Afsar, a tailor, said that because of prolonged and frequent power outage, about 15 employees of his two shops were rendered jobless and he had also suffered a huge financial loss.

He said if there was any technical fault, or Pesco could not fulfil the demand, it should chalk out a strategy and issue the loadshedding schedule.

Because of the loadshedding, most of the flourmills had also suspended the wheat crushing resulting shortage of flour in some parts of the district.