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QUETTA: Gas supply was disrupted in some parts of Sibi and Bolan districts late on Wednesday night due to a ruptured main gas pipeline, which also supplies gas to the provincial capital, Quetta.
Officials in Bolan district confirmed the rupture of the pipeline passing through Bolan River, releasing huge quantities of gas in the area. The authorities have cut off gas supply in the affected pipeline, informing the locals about the gas leakage.
The provincial capital and its surrounding areas, already facing low gas pressure, are expected to be affected, and gas supply could be suspended anytime in the next 24 hours.
Officials from the Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC), responsible for supplying gas to Balochistan, also confirmed saying, “Gas supply to Quetta will be affected”. They said that engineers have been dispatched to replace the affected portion of the pipeline.
“The SSGC team will determine the reason behind the rupture of the pipeline,” SSGC officials said.
Due to a shortage of gas from different fields, the SSGC announced a suspension of gas supply to industries and power generation units in Sindh and Balochistan for two days, from Friday to Sunday.
In a statement on Thursday, SSGC said that the supply shortfall of around 65 MMSCFD from various gas fields last night has resulted in low gas pressures across Sindh and Balochistan. “At the same time, we are still facing a short supply of around 20 MMSCFD.”
To effectively manage gas load, all industries, including their power generation units, will remain closed for 48 hours, starting from 8am on Friday, January 12 until 8am on Sunday January 14.
Protests in Rakhshan
Protests were staged in different towns of the Rakhshan Division on Thursday in solidarity with the participants of the Islamabad sit-in on the call of the Baloch Yakjehti Committee.
Rallies were taken out in Dalbandin, Noshki, and Kharan to denounce the enforced disappearance and alleged extrajudicial killings of political workers, students.
The demonstrators highlighted human rights violations in Balochistan, asserting that they were “unconstitutional”. A large number of students, members of civil society, and others, including women, participated in the protests.
Published in Dawn, January 12th, 2024
