KARACHI: Mayor Wasim Akhtar said on Tuesday that the people of the city were paying the cost of a tussle between K-Electric and the Sui Southern Gas Company and appealed to the president of Pakistan to take notice of the prolonged loadshedding in Karachi.

While speaking to the elected local government representatives during a protest over the prolonged and frequent power outages in the city, he said not only the residential areas but the city hospitals were also facing the problem of loadshedding.

The demonstration was held in front of the KE head office.

“K-Electric, SSGC, KWSB or whatever organisation, they must now take this protest seriously. I appeal to the president of Pakistan to help resolve the conflict between KE and the SSGC for the provision of a required volume of gas to the power utility,” the mayor said. He said at least 200mmcfd gas should be supplied to KE so that the current power crisis could be resolved.

Mr Akhtar said KE officials told him that the power utility did not resort to any loadshedding during the matches of the Pakistan Super League in the city as the SSGC provided 190mmcfd gas during the three days of the games.

Quoting KE officials, he said that at present the SSGC was providing only 90mmcfd to the power utility.

DMC East chairman Moeed Anwer, DMC Korangi chairman Syed Nayyar Raza, City Council parliamentary leader Aslam Shah Afridi, Land Committee chairman Syed Arshad Hassan, Law Committee chairman Advocate Arif Khan, City Council parliamentary leader for the PML-N Aman Khan Afridi, ANP parliamentary leader Alam Zaib Alai, JUI-F parliamentary leader Akbar Shah Hashmi, Advocate Shuja Haider of the PTI and other members of the City Council and elected representatives were present on the occasion.

The protesters were holding placards and banners urging K-Electric to stop the loadshedding and overbilling in Karachi.

Published in Dawn, April 18th, 2018