Taking a stand: Hundreds rally against long power outages in Swat

Give Wapda three days to resolve the issue.

SWAT:

People across Swat Valley rallied against the “worsening” power outages on Wednesday.

Angry protesters from all walks of life came out on roads in Kabal, Barikot and Madyan tehsils and demanded Wapda to bring an end to load shedding in the region.

Rafiq Nawaz Khan, a political activist from Madyan, told The Express Tribune that the residents are facing severe problems due to prolonged power outages and the voltage is very low even when the power is resumed, due to which electronic appliances break down.”We have asked Wapda officials to provide uninterrupted electrical supply on several occasions but to no avail. This is the last chance for Wapda to solve the issue after which we will be forced to take extreme action,” he added.

He also demanded Wapda officials to start the work on Madyan Grid Station on an immediate basis, which was suspended due to the floods last year.

Protesters took out another in Kabal tehsil against unscheduled power outages and low voltage. “People in Kabal are facing twice as much load shedding as other parts of the country; our lives have become miserable,” said Iqbal Khan, a political activist. “Even when the power is resumed, the voltage is extremely low due to which we cannot run electronic devices,” he added.

He added shortage of water in the region is also adding to the people’s miseries, who are already facing several social and financial issues. “If Wapda fails to solve these within three days, we will strike with full force, and the responsibility of any untoward incident will fall on Wapda,” he threatened.

An all parties’ conference on Thursday said they will hold a “full-fledged” protest in Mingora against the long hours of power cuts and low voltage.

“This is the time to take a stand against Wapda officials, who are not giving us our basic rights,” said Swat Jamiat Ulema Islam General Secretary Qari Shamsur Rehman. He also appealed to local residents and other organisations to participate in the protest actively. In response to the statement, Swat Trader Federation said they will fully cooperate with the leaders against unscheduled power cuts in the area, which have practically brought business activities to a standstill.

Member Provincial Assembly Sher Shah Khan, while addressing a gathering at Barikot, said the issue of low voltage was due to shortages of transformers in the main grid station. However, he assured that the problem will be solved by July 3.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 1^st, 2011.