PESHAWAR: Consumers belonging to various localities on Wednesday blocked the Kohat Road here against the prolonged power cuts, suspending vehicular traffic on the artery for some time.

The riled protesters blocked the road at Bala Manri Chowk by setting old tyres on fire, and shouted slogans against Peshawar Electric Supply Company.

The protest also caused suspension of the BRT service on Kohat Road. The protesters said that they had been facing worst kind of power cuts, particularly for the past three weeks, which had also caused serious water shortage in different localities.

The people said Hazarkhwani, Atta Mohammad Garhi, Bala Manri, Arbab Landi, Shaheen Colony, Swati Phattak, Nouthia and surrounding area were worst affected due to the unscheduled and prolonged power outages.

The protesters said they had repeatedly requested the Pesco authorities to ensure smooth power supply to the consumers because they were paying power bills regularly, but to no avail. They said the consumers were subjected to prolonged power cuts on the pretext of line losses, saying they had copies of the paid power bills but the officials were not paying heed towards their plea.

The power outages, they said had caused serious water shortage in different areas and they had to fetch water from far off areas. They said power supply was restored for short period but they could not get water due to low voltage.

The consumers said in the prevailing situation, the children, women and ailing senior citizens were the worst affected.

They warned to besiege the Pesco offices on Shami Road in case the power company failed to ensure smooth power supply to all these localities. Efforts were made to contact the Pesco spokesman for comments, but he could not be contacted on telephone.

Published in Dawn, May 23rd, 2024