MINGORA: Prolonged power outages continued in Swat district on Saturday, especially during Iftar and Sehri times, greatly troubling the people.

The unscheduled outages have caused people to take to the streets in various areas. Sohail Khan of Balogram told Dawn that Wapda suspended electricity supply to their village during Iftari and Sehri. “It is the responsibility of the government and the elected representatives to ensure uninterrupted power supply during these times,” he demanded.

Another villager, Gul Mohammad, said that apart from Iftar and Sehri, electricity was also suspended during Taraweeh.

Hanif, resident of Kokrai, said that the area had been without electricity for last three days due to a faulty transformer.

Khalid Mehmood, deputy provincial secretary of Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party, said in a statement that it was failure of the elected representatives of Swat to ensure smooth power supply to the valley during Ramazan. He demanded of thegovernment to take steps for ending power outages and low voltage problems.

Meanwhile, two more people tested positive for dengue virus on Saturday, bringing the number of dengue patients to 17 in Swat district. An official at Saidu Sharif Hospital identified the patients as Abdullah and Shaukat Ali of Amankot area of Mingora city.

Published in Dawn, July 13th, 2014