Power outages spoil Eid festivities

Drop in temperature, frequent power outages, shortage of fuel and firewood marred Eid festivities in G-B this year.

GILGIT: The drop in temperature, frequent power outages, shortage of fuel and firewood in Gilgit-Baltistan, spoiled Eid festivities of the people this year. The inefficient staff of the power department could not make arrangements to ensure a smooth supply of electricity to the people on this auspicious occasion.

The temperatures dropped to minus five degree Celsius (-5.5) in Skardu and two degree in Gilgit. The ‘hide and seek’ of electricity left many families frustrated as they could not even iron their clothes on Eidul Azha on Wednesday.

Kashrote partially remained in darkness on the occasion of Eid and hundreds of families suffered a lot as a transformer in the locality was out of order due to a technical fault. “We are unhappy with the power department,” Haseena Gul, a housewife, said on Friday. “Only God can make things better now since the government has not been able to help us,” she said.

“My children cannot study and watch television because of frequent power outages,” Saleema Khan, a mother of four, said. “We thought that at least on Eid days we would have uninterrupted electricity but I wasn’t even able to prepare food on oven due to power outage,” she added.

The markets and roads in Gilgit were wearing deserted look on Eid days as people had already left for their home towns to observe Eid with their families.

Musa Karim, a resident of Hunza, said that the situation in his home town was even worse compared to Gilgit and other parts of the region because of the shortage of electricity and other facilities. “We are not only facing electricity and fuel crises but also facing shortage of kerosene oil and firewood in the mar
ket,” he said, adding that due to severe cold weather many children are suffering from illness.

Mohammad Raza, a resident of Skardu who celebrated Eid with his relatives in Gilgit, said that the unavailability of wood has been a constant source of concern for people as the temperature in the region falls.

“Dealers supplying wood to Skardu from Gilgit and Chilas have not yet been issued permits by the government,” he said. He urged the government to take notice of this situation immediately and provide some relief to the people.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 20^th, 2010.