Power outages rile citizens

LESCO denies electricity shortage amid heatwave

LAHORE:

Unannounced electricity outages across Punjab have intensified public frustration as residents struggle through a heatwave, with many questioning the gap between official claims of adequate power supply and their daily experience of prolonged disruptions.

Families, businesses and vulnerable residents, including children and senior citizens, reported enduring several hours without electricity during periods of extreme heat. Consumers said repeated outages, low voltage and power fluctuations had also damaged household appliances such as air conditioners, refrigerators, televisions and water motors, adding to their financial burden.

Residents in the Township, Green Town, Gulberg, Garden Town, Johar Town, Anarkali, China Scheme and Baghbanpura complained of frequent power interruptions, unstable voltage and lengthy delays in supply restoration.

Similar complaints were reported from suburban areas and other cities served by the Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO), where consumers said unscheduled load-shedding continued despite assurances to the contrary.

Many residents questioned why they were facing repeated outages when LESCO has consistently maintained that there is sufficient electricity available to meet the demand.

According to LESCO, there is no declared or undeclared load-shedding in Lahore. The utility said its electricity demand stood at 4,200 megawatts while supply was ar the same level.

It maintained that power interruptions were limited to scheduled shutdowns for development work and high-loss feeders, rather than a system-wide electricity shortage.

However, separate reports cited a shortfall ranging between 500MW and 800MW, indicating that electricity demand had climbed to over 4,750MW while supply from the National Power Control Centre stood at approximately 4,200MW, with technical faults increasing because of the severe heat. Some grid stations in the DHA area were reportedly shut for more than an hour to protect infrastructure, while transformer failures and staff shortages were also cited as contributing factors.

Residents said the outages had become particularly difficult during evening and night hours, when solar power systems provide little relief.

Consumers in suburban and rural areas reported longer periods without electricity, with some claiming outages extended beyond four hours in urban centres and six hours in villages.

Social media platforms were flooded with complaints from consumers describing repeated power cuts, unstable voltage and delayed restoration of electricity during one of the hottest periods of the year. Many users criticised the authorities for failing to ensure uninterrupted supply despite high electricity tariffs, while others called for improvement of the distribution network and transparency regarding outage schedules.

Residents in Rawalpindi also reported unannounced power cuts amid soaring temperatures. Consumers said prolonged outages had disrupted water supply, affected traffic signals and created difficulties for businesses, hospitals and students.