Karachi residents hold protest over power, water supply cuts

Traffic was severely impacted, with cars queued for hours after the protest near Isa Nagar.

Residents near Karachi's Isa Nagri staged a protest against power and water shortages, badly disrupting traffic flow on city's key road.

Long queues of vehicles formed as the road closure caused severe disruption to the flow of traffic.

On Tuesday evening, the locals gathered to protest the ongoing lack of electricity and water supply, shutting down the road near Isa Nagari. The protest led to one of the worst traffic jams, with traffic on the Lyari Expressway also severely affected.

The protesting residents stated that the area is experiencing more than 12 hours of power cuts daily, with unscheduled outages becoming a routine issue. They also highlighted that both scheduled and unscheduled load-shedding have severely disrupted the water supply in the region.

Despite multiple complaints to the Water Corporation authorities regarding the power outage schedule, the protesters said that no significant measures have been taken to address the water supply problems.

The protesters demanded the immediate cessation of both scheduled and unscheduled power cuts in the area. As a result of the protest, commuters leaving work were stuck in a massive traffic jam, enduring severe inconvenience.

After negotiations with the police, the protesters agreed to disperse peacefully following assurances from authorities. The road was reopened for traffic, and the traffic police worked to restore the flow of vehicles.

Previously residents of Karachi's Jahangir Road staged a protest , demanding an end to prolonged power and water outages. The demonstration resulted in the closure of both lanes of Jahangir Road, severely affecting traffic flow.

Police officers were deployed at the protest site to manage the situation and assist affected commuters.

Later the Battagram Trade Union announced a complete shutter-down strike and sit-in starting Tuesday, protesting ongoing power outages in the district. The union also plans to withhold electricity bill payments until the situation is resolved.

The union also announced that they will withhold electricity bill payments until the power supply schedule is normalised.

Electricity becomes more expensive for Karachites

The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) has jacked up electricity rates for Karachi by Rs0.40 per unit.

This hike is part of the monthly adjustment for August 2024. NEPRA has issued a notification confirming that the additional charges will be collected from consumers in the January 2025 bills by K-Electric.

Earlier, K-Electric (KE) has requested a power tariff reduction of Rs0.16 per unit due to fuel cost adjustments (FCA) for September 2024.

KMC collects Rs228m taxes via power bills

Mayor Murtaza Wahab said on Tuesday that Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) received Rs228 million from municipal utility charges collected through K-Electric bills in just one month.

KMC aims to collect Rs3 billion annually from municipal taxes, which will be used for development projects across the city as well as for paying pensions and dues to municipal employees. Details of these receipts and expenditures will be available online.

Speaking at a press conference at KMC's head office on Tuesday, alongside Deputy Mayor Salman Abdullah Murad, he said it was time to question those who opposed the collection of municipal taxes through K Electric