KARACHI:
With each passing year, the load shedding situation has continued to worsen in Hyderabad, Larkana, Sukkur, Mirpurkhas, and other parts of Sindh. Unfortunately, the problems of Sindh go unheard because only Karachi’s issues receive media coverage. The sweltering temperatures coupled with power outages of up to 12 to 14 hours daily are torturous because people have little choice but to carry on with their daily chores.
The water shortages have added to people’s predicaments as they cannot soak themselves up with water to gain respite from the heat. The fans, air conditioners, and refrigerators serve little purpose due to constant load shedding. Women working in kitchens with little ventilation and open fires are faced with extremely dangerous conditions. Recently, my family installed a solar panel system at our house, which has provided us with much-needed relief. However, this was an expensive investment, which not everyone can afford. In fact, in interior Sindh, most people cannot even afford to replace tin roofs with cooler materials to reflect solar radiation away.
Even though residents of cities and towns of Sindh demonstrate daily over different issues, their protests and requests receive little attention from the press or government authorities. It is high time that both federal and provincial governments paid attention to the grievances of Sindh’s residents and address the problems faced by them.
Waqas Ali
Hyderabad
Published in The Express Tribune, July 21st, 2022.
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