No electricity: Three students faint at school from heat

Principal says Mepco officials removed 3 meters installed at the school.

MUZAFFARGARH:

As many as three students of Government Boys High School were taken to a hospital on Monday after they fainted from heat due. Electricity supply to the school was disconnected by Multan Electric Power Company (Mepco) officials three days ago.

The students, identified as Ali Qureshi, Ammar Bin Rashid and Hamza Khan, were later discharged from the hospital.

Principal Abu Bakar Awan said that three meters were installed in the school. He said despite payment of all electricity bills, a line superintendent had removed the meters four days ago without a prior notice to the school administration. He said an FIR was registered against Multan Electric Power Company (Mepco) officials for meter theft.

Electricity supply to a girls’ school in front of the boys’ high school was also disconnected four days ago, but was restored later.

A Mepco official said that a four-storey building was under construction at both schools. He said some contractors had been involved in power pilferage. He said the managements of both schools had been informed that power was being stolen from their connections.

“We had to remove the meters because the school administration did not take notice of the matter,” he said.

He said the electricity supply to the girls’ school was restored after the headmistress assured Mepco officials that the management will report any such incident in future.

Parents protested against the disconnection and said that the students were being punished for a dispute between the school administration and Mepco. They urged the senior officials to take notice of the situation.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 4^th, 2012.