BAHAWALPUR: A large number of villagers on Tuesday protested against prolonged electricity loadshedding at 13-Pulli near Chak 13/BC on the Yazman Road, about 10km from here.

The demonstrators raised slogans against the government and Multan Electric Power Company (Mepco) and blocked the Bahawalpur-Yazman road for four hours. They said the consumers of the rural areas were facing 15 to 20 hours power outages daily and they were deprived of the utility even at Iftar and Sehr.

With the blockade of road, the only means of communication between Bahawalpur and Yazman was cut off and long queues of traffic could be seen on both sides of the road. After about four hours, the demonstrators ended their protest with a threat that if Mepco failed to redress their grievances, they would again block the road for a whole day.

Mepco has started carrying out excessive loadshedding for last several days, badly affecting the business activities. Its officials expressed their inability to improve the situation, saying that it was beyond their powers as they followed directives from load management board in Islamabad.

Published in Dawn, July 23rd, 2014