Electricity wires hanging down in clusters from electrical poles, passing through houses or lying on the street is not a very pleasant sight. A casual look at many of the streetlight poles or electricity poles in the city will always reveal such ugly scenes. Despite many cases of electrocution every year, the Islamabad Electric Supply Company (IESCO) seems least bothered with addressing the problem.
During Monday’s spell of rain, high voltage electricity cables in many parts of the city sunk dangerously low, drooping to ground level and posing a danger to residents nearby. Many electricity poles were seen slanting.
The snare of wires not only mars the area’s face, but also keeps our hearts racing in fear, says Rana Nadeem, a resident of Bhabra Bazaar, an architectural heritage zone.
The residents and city managers of Rawalpindi have come to ignore this ugly trap of wires as these same wires carry electricity to thousands of small basement shops and offices in dark alleys where even sunlight and fresh air cannot penetrate.
But every so often, this pretence of innocuousness is exposed. Not long ago, an IESCO worker was electrocuted when he was working on a wet pole during a downpour on Asghar Mall Road. Even last year, a pedestrian was electrocuted at the turn towards Pirwadhai Bus Stand on IJ Principal Road after a live wire dropped on him.
Unwieldy webs of electricity wires hanging on electricity poles appear to be overlooked. Visits to several parts of Pindi city not only show sights that defy attempts at creating a visually aesthetic city, but also one that pose danger to residents.
Areas such as Bahbara Bazaar, Lunda Bazaar, Sarafa Bazaar, Moti Bazaar, Bara Bazaar, Iqbal Road, DAV College Road, Gawalmandi, Qasai Galli Pak Crockery Market, Dhok Najoo and Kashmiri Bazaar, are just a few of such places where heavy webs of electricity wires dot the roads.
Apart from the visual irritant created by the clutter of electricity wires, they also pose a danger to human lives. This is because many of the wires feebly hang off heavy-laden poles and as a result, their weight pulls them earthwards. At times, they fall off the hook and hurt passersby.
Asif Khan, a resident of Railway Colony, Loi Bher, said that until recently, all the connections on his street were illegal. “I had to cry out to Railway authorities to avoid a case of electrocution.” The connections were done on an electricity pole on Salahuddin Avenue and transmitted to buildings in Railway Colony. Sparks often emanated from them and the wires were resting on the roofs of some buildings in the area, he added.
There are several cases of illegal strings of connections resulting in a web on the road running through Faisal Town to Gangal Town and Gulzar-e-Quaid to Airport Housing Society and Judicial Colony. Also, some specific cases on the Airport Link Road route are Tajabad, Shah Khalid Colony, Dhok Hafiz and Chungi No 11, where poles are entangled with disjointed cables.
While episodes of electrocution are mainly restricted to the rainy season, fires ensuing from short circuits are a recurring dilemma. The number of electricity wires keeps growing with increasing demand. Every day, a new business enterprise opens, and with it the power load also goes up. There have been some occurrences of transformer fires inside the markets due to short-circuiting, says Akbar Hussain, who runs a garment store in Commercial Market, Satellite Town.
IESCO does not even cover the main power boxes. Hawkers display their goods on them. An accident is waiting to happen, says, Haider Ali, the owner of a general store on Saidpur Road.
Traders claim they had informed IESCO of the slanting electricity poles and naked live wires issues, but IESCO officers told them that they were unable to do anything as they lacked funds.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 22nd, 2012.
COMMENTS (23)
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I've always thought them dangerous. They must pose some kind of risk, when you consider what they do. But can't those that write these comments keep things to themselves? They are simply adding to the panic of parents that may already be causing them to overprotect their kids too much. What kind of a world do we live in when terrifying people is considered good science? These people sound like politicians!
Power rates are hiked every now and then but power lines aren't buried underground for want of fund despite claims made by our governments infrequently. The other day I was in a plaza in Ferozepur near Waris Khan and was amazed to see the electric wires haphazardly wrapped around grills of the balconies of the plaza where several printing presses were installed.
It's quite alarming that there is still no definitive answer. If living close to power lines is dangerous, what will it take for the government to do something about it?
Our civilization lives on electricity, we could not function without it and I doubt that anyone would want to get rid of their lights, TVs or computers, let alone refrigerators. But builders should not be building homes near power lines.
I've lived 200 yards or so from power lines in my locality for all my life and I've never felt them dangerous. In fact, the only real danger I've had is stirring fears about them! What a fun!
In Gulzare-Quaid, those who dug up the roads mistakenly cut off electrical cables from the electric poles at many places. Since they did not know what do with them, they simply left them hanging. Some such cables hang loosely enough, posing a major danger.
My street in Shah Khalid Colony also has the same scene. In the days of load shedding such indifference by the authorities shows their insensitivity towards illegal connections which add ugliness to the already dangerous clutter of wires.
A net of electric wires in Faisal Town's commercial market fell down many times whenever a truck loaded with building material passed by. I remember a school boy getting electrocuted by a naked wire running along a school wall on Kali Tanki Road, As a result, he lost his arm. It's a great problem in our city. Authorities need to care of it.