Lights out: Residents on city’s outskirts upset with excessive load-shedding

Say they have no electricity, gas or drinking water, accuse the government for apathy.

PESHAWAR:

Residents of Badhaber, Sheikh Muhammadi, Telaband, Masho Khel, Mashogagar and Sheikhan have been suffering through unannounced and prolonged load-shedding, especially during Sehr, Iftar and Taraweeh.

Faiz Muhammad, a resident of Badhaber, told The Express Tribune power went out at around 8pm on Friday and did not come back on even till 4pm Saturday. “There has been no electricity for the past 20 hours in this heat. There is no drinking water in houses and people have to go to the mosque to get it,” he complained.

“We wonder what is the difference between the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-led provincial government and the erstwhile one led by the Awami National Party, or between [Prime Minister] Nawaz Sharif and [former premier] Yousaf Raza Gilani,” said Israr Ali, another local. “Both the federal and provincial governments are no better at solving our problems.”

Ali said excessive power load-shedding was being attributed to mounting line losses, but they also had to contend with gas load-shedding. “Our people are poor and not everyone can afford to buy a generator, but even those who have small generators cannot use them due to gas outages.”

He alleged some influential people were using illegal gas connections without installing meters but those who did have meters were facing regular disruptions.

Residents demanded the federal government take notice of the situation and keep its promise to prevent load-shedding during Iftar, Sehr and Taraweeh.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 6^th, 2014.