In May 2026, Islamabad-based vlogger Muhammad Mobeen filmed Dera Ismail Khan’s famous Chowgalla, the British-era town centre where four bazaars intersect, using a drone.

The video glides over the crowded bazaars in the heart of Dera Ismail Khan before pulling back to reveal buildings packed tightly together. As the camera pulls back, rooftops fill the frame, covered not in the usual clutter of water tanks and laundry lines but in sleek black and blue solar panels, stretching as far as the eye can see.

The video has garnered roughly a million views and more than 25,000 likes on TikTok alone. Its popularity has spawned a host of copycat videos, with some content creators dubbing the city “Solar Ismail Khan.”

The city’s urban area covers approximately 40 square kilometres and has a population of roughly 210,000, according to the 2023 census. Beyond the spectacle of thousands of solar panels covering the city’s rooftops, Dera Ismail Khan’s solar transition is beginning to reshape the local economy. It is creating new opportunities while making some traditional trades less viable in this dusty, conflict-affected city in southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, roughly 300 kilometres from Peshawar.

From specialised solar markets to farmers abandoning diesel-powered irrigation, an unreliable grid is driving a new economy in Dera Ismail Khan — but not everyone can afford to join it

A SOLAR BOOM

Over the past few years, three specialised solar markets have emerged in the city, at Khushal Market, Bannu Adda and Tank Road. Circular Road alone has up to 70 shops dealing exclusively in solar equipment, serving as a major distribution hub for neighbouring Tank, and Upper and Lower South Waziristan.

The boom has extended beyond retail, creating work in solar installation, electrical wiring and the supply and maintenance of batteries, tube wells and related equipment.

Muhammad Saeed, a local solar appliances dealer, says that, by his estimates, the majority of households in the city have adopted solar power. “Those who installed solar [systems] earlier are now upgrading to lithium batteries as prices fall,” says Saeed.

The solar transition has also created ancillary jobs in supply chains and logistics, as well as work for solar-panel cleaners and wiring technicians. At the same time, traditional electricians are seeing a decline in conventional electrical-appliances repairs.

“If consumers use solar energy instead of grid electricity, there is less need for repairs,” electrician Muhammad Naveed tells Eos. To supplement his income, Naveed now also takes on jobs involving solar systems, including for tube wells, alongside specialised wiring work.

THE PRICE OF POWER

Saeed and other solar traders say the city’s crippling, year-round power outages are the biggest driver of the transition. Data from the Peshawar Electric Supply Company (Pesco) show that 43 of the city’s 83 electricity feeders record line losses of at least 80 per cent. Pesco also identifies widespread electricity theft as a problem in the area. A spokesperson for the power utility tells Eos that such areas may face outages lasting 16 to 18 hours a day.

Rising temperatures add to the pressure on residents. During summer, daytime temperatures in Dera Ismail Khan frequently reach 40–45 degrees Celsius, adding to the incentive to seek alternatives.

Dera Ismail Khan’s solar boom is part of a wider shift across Pakistan, driven in part by falling prices for Chinese-made panels and rising electricity tariffs over the past four years. A report by the UK-based energy think tank Ember, titled The Solarisation of Pakistan’s Energy Economy, estimates that Pakistan’s solar power generation rose by 21 terawatt-hours (TWh) in just two years, taking the total increase to 33 TWh. Distributed solar accounted for 28 per cent of Pakistan’s electricity generation in FY25, up from 10 per cent in FY23, the report says.

Eight 585-watt panel solar systems have a combined rated capacity of 4.68 kilowatts (kW). According to local traders, a system of this size can power an air conditioner, refrigerator, lights and fans, with battery storage providing back-up when solar generation is insufficient.

According to solar trader Ali Jan, an individual panel that sold for Rs75,000 not long ago now costs roughly Rs16,000, following a global glut that drove down solar-panel prices. The price per watt has fallen from Rs128 to around Rs28, he says. The cost of an eight-panel set-up fell to around Rs220,000, says Jan, adding that households could recoup the investment within one to two years through savings on electricity.

The imposition of general sales tax on solar imports last year, along with geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, has pushed prices back up, Naveed explains. “Today, solar panels sell for up to 32 rupees per watt in Dera Ismail Khan, bringing the cost of an eight-panel installation to approximately 280,000 rupees,” he says.

THE UNEVEN DIVIDENDS

Dr Aijaz Ahmed has had small solar panels installed at his home and clinic for more than a decade. “In most months, I do not have to pay for electricity,” he tells Eos. “At the clinic, too, the electricity bill is a fraction of what it used to be,” he says.

The savings extend beyond households. Small industries and commercial enterprises, facing high grid-electricity tariffs and rising fuel costs, have also embraced solar power.

One businessman estimates that running a stone-crushing plant on a diesel generator costs up to Rs1.8 million a month. Converting it to solar would require an initial investment of around Rs10.5 million, he says, which could be recovered in just under three years.

Commercial markets and wedding halls are also installing solar systems, with some businesses seeking to reduce or eliminate their dependence on grid electricity. Farmers are following a similar trend. A solar-powered irrigation system, capable of serving 10 acres of farmland, now costs around Rs9 million, according to Ali Jan.

Rising fuel costs are also encouraging farmers to switch to solar-powered tube wells, reducing their dependence on diesel-powered irrigation. Local solar-equipment prices are now closely tied to those in Karachi. Dealers say that a one-rupee-per-watt increase in Karachi is quickly reflected in local prices. Freight charges from Karachi to Dera Ismail Khan have also risen, from around Rs270,000 to Rs350,000 per container since the conflict involving Iran began.

The city’s newer commercial markets, including Gomal, Khyber, Anarkali, Mian Commercial and Gulf Plaza, also face the challenge of keeping shops lit and cooled. Their enclosed spaces and cooling requirements make reliable electricity particularly important. Rising electricity tariffs and fuel costs have made diesel generators increasingly expensive to operate, encouraging businesses to invest in solar power.

WHO GETS LEFT BEHIND

But the transition has also created a divide between those who can afford solar installations and those who cannot. While households and businesses with sufficient resources can reduce their dependence on an unreliable grid, poorer residents remain reliant on electricity they may struggle to afford — or continue to endure long power outages.

Amir Khan, a social worker who runs the “Amir Bhai” Facebook page to help families in need, says poor single women are particularly disadvantaged when it comes to accessing solar power. Khan, who has more than 500,000 Facebook followers, began financing his welfare work himself in 2018.

He says he now receives numerous requests from low-income families seeking help with solar installations.

The solar panels that now dominate Dera Ismail Khan’s rooftops tell only part of the story. Beneath them, new businesses are emerging and old trades are adapting, while families unable to afford the transition remain dependent on an unreliable grid.

In a city increasingly known as “Solar Ismail Khan”, access to electricity is becoming a question not just of supply, but of purchasing power.

The writer is a Peshawar-based reporter for Dawn, with over 15 years of experience covering governance, climate and the economy in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
X: @Manzoor

Published in Dawn, EOS, October 25th, 2026