SWABI, Aug 17: Residents of Kala have criticized the Peshawar Electricity Supply Company (Pesco) management for their failure to install a 50-KV transformer and instead installing only 16 electricity poles instead of 30 approved by the government.

They further said that because of this a number of farmers had been deprived of electricity and they were unable to install tube-wells to irrigate their crops. They accused officials concerned of adopting delaying tactics, and send that their repeated requests for installation of more electricity poles were ignored.

The residents showed to Dawn a copy of the work order and a map about the sanctioning of 30 electricity poles for the area. The work order No 13907/HDM dated Nov 14, 1996, shows that Rs6.3 million has been shown sanctioned.

The order includes 43 other areas of the NWFP. The residents claim that in other areas the order was fully executed but the residents of Kala have been subjected to bias. The work order was issued/approved by the Directorate of Planning & Engineering and Water and Power Development Authority, Peshawar.

It calls for the execution of the work orders and the submission of a progress report to the provincial Wapda chief because the Peshawar Electricity Supply Company (Pesco) was not established at that time.

The main purpose of the Peshawar Electricity Supply Company project was to provide electricity for tube-wells and to reduce power load in the area. With the provision of power the people would install tube-wells to irrigate crops and in its absence there was no other plan to cultivate crops in the area.