VEHARI, Oct 26: People have been suffering from four-to-six hour everyday loadshedding for the last two weeks in the district, Dawn reveals.

The unannounced power failure has adversely affected domestic and business routines. The prolonged power outages are against the instructions of the Water and Power Development Authority chairman who says that only 30 minutes loadshedding will be carried out every day.

Resident of 9-11/WB said they were facing water shortage due to power breakdowns. They said power breakdowns brought working at rural health centres and basic health units at a halt. They alleged most of the time doctors did not attend the patients on the pretext of loadshedding.

People in Luddan said complained that malaria broke out in their area because of the problems created by power breakdowns.

Besides the health sector, prolonged power shutdowns have affected the farm sector. Farmers face shortage of irrigation water in the early sowing period of the Rabbi crops. Kissan Board Pakistan Vehari President Jawed Husain Shah said the government had failed to plan any effective strategy to control loadshedding.

Various traders, including steel traders, sanitary workers and officials of Anjman-i-Tajran, criticised the Multan Electric Power Company (Mepco) for creating hardships for people through unannounced loadshedding.

Union Council Nazim Shamila Aslam of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz said power outages had exposed the efficiency of the government. She appealed to the Supreme Court to take note of the unannounced power shutdowns in south Punjab.

When the Dawn correspondent contacted Muhammad Ishfaq, Mepco executive engineer of Vehari circle, he said his department was not responsible for unannounced loadshedding, because they only obeyed the directions of officials of the Control Centre in Islamabad.