TAXILA:  The residents of different areas here on Tuesday resorted to violent protests against the low gas pressure.

They blocked the Taxila-Hattar Road for over four  hours, leaving the commuters stranded.  

Hundreds of residents of Usman Khattar, Kolian, Ahatta, Sultanpur, Pind Tarbella and adjacent areas, gathered on the Taxila-Hattar Road at 11am and blocked it. They pelted the vehicles with stones.

The protesters said they had been registering their protest against the low gas pressure which according to them had crippled their lives.

The protesters, including women, students, children and elderly people, were carrying wooden sticks, banners and placards inscribed with slogans against the Sui Northern Gas Pipelines (SNGPL).

They also chanted anti-government slogans. “It seems as if we are living in the stone-age,” they said. “We are not getting power and gas supply though we pay inflated bills,” they added.

“Gas supply to our area has been suspended to our area for the last one month and we have requested the local administration and the SNGPL authorities but to no avail,” they added.

Cooking stoves, heaters and geysers are not functioning properly due to the low gas pressure, the protesters said.

“We cannot cook food on time as preparing a cup of tea takes an hour,” said one of the protesters, Bushra Perveen.

“We are forced to take a cold shower in this chilly conditions,” complained Zaitoon Bibi, adding heaters, a basic necessity of winter, were lying off for want of gas.

Malik  Ayaz, a former union council nazim of Usman Khattar, said after the prolonged loadshedding, now the massive gas shortage had returned to haunt citizens.

Former federal minister and PTI president north Punjab chapter Ghulam Sarwar Khan also joined the protesters.

He said the government had failed to provide basic commodities such as petrol, gas, CNG and electricity to the citizens.

Published in Dawn January 28th, 2015

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