CHARSADDA, July 19: Power protesters on Friday stormed the Peshawar Electric Supply Company offices at Shabqadar, torching record, vehicles and furniture.

The protesters also blocked the Peshawar-Bajaur road for five hours, refusing to hold talks with any official, including the deputy commissioner and the district police officer, who had reached the spot soon after the violent demonstration began.

The protesters wielding sticks marched on the road before storming the Pesco offices. Former nazims Mohammad Zamin Khan and Shahid Khan Katozai led the protesters, who chanted slogans against the government for subjecting them to excessive loadshedding in Ramazan.

The protesters threw the furniture and record of the Pesco office out and then set it to fire. They also burnt the record of the executive engineer’s office. The Pesco employees disappeared from the scene soon after the baton wielding protesters reached the offices.

The enraged people also set fire to official and private vehicles and motorcycles parked on the office premises.

The protesters said the Pesco had resorted to cruel and unjustified loadshedding in the area despite the clear directives of the Peshawar High Court and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa chief minister not carry out outages in Ramazan.

Soon after the demonstration began, the deputy commissioner and district police officer reached the spot and offered talks to the protesters’ leaders to end the roadblock, but they refused, insisting they only wanted uninterrupted power supply.

The protesters also declined to hold talks with the local MPA who had also reached the spot to pacify the demonstrators.

Meanwhile, the Qaumi Watan Party also organised a demonstration in Charsadda bazaar to protest against unscheduled and prolonged power outages in the district. The rally was taken out on the call of QWP chairman Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao.

JUI-F MNA Maulana Gohar Shah also addressed the protesters.

PESHAWAR: Residents of various localities on Friday blocked roads to protest prolonged loadshedding.

The people were brought out on roads through announcements on loudspeakers. Processions were taken out from Gulberg, Nauthia, and Bara Gate. The protesters blocked Sher Shah Suri Road near Sunehri Masjid after Friday prayers.

Holding sticks they shouted anti-government slogans. Similarly, Christian women also blocked the Church Road in Kohati area to condemn government failure to overcome the prolonged and unscheduled loadshedding in Peshawar. They also burnt tyres on the road.

Residents of Pandu, Mohmandabad, Arbab Landi, Daudzai and Badbher also took out separate processions against power outages which they said had create severe water shortage in their localities and mosques.

“We have time and again contacted the Town-I officials to supply water in tankers in Ramazan but to no avail,” said Jamshid of Nishtarabad.

MINGORA: Prolonged power outages and low voltage in Mingora city and rural areas of Swat district has caused water shortage forcing people to get water from streams as government water supply schemes are also non-functional.

People of Mohalla Rang union council in Mingora city staged demonstration outside TMA office against loadshedding which has led to water shortage. Fazal Wahid, a protester, told this correspondent that they had been without water supply for last few days.

Later, the protesters also staged a demonstration outside Swat Press Club and chanted slogans against the TMA and Wapda.

An official said 36 tube-wells in Mingora city had been non-functional due to loadshedding and low voltage.

Chief municipal officer, Mingora TMA Nisar Khan told mediapersons that tube-wells in the city had stopped functioning due to loadshedding.

It was reported that people in different areas of Swat fetched water from streams in Saidu Sharif, Ogdo and Fizzagut.

TIMERGARA: Power supply from Chakdara grid station remained suspended to parts of Talash and Adenzai for about five hours on Thursday night and four hours on Friday.

People said they couldn’t sleep on Thursday night due to breakdown of electricity.

The worshippers also faced problems due to non-availability of water in mosques for Friday prayers as most water supply schemes remained nonfunctional due to loadshedding. The residents demanded of the government to end the excessive loadshedding in Ramazan.