SCCI flays excessive power outages in Small Industrial Estate

PESHAWAR: The Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) on Tuesday expressed resentment over excessive electricity loadshedding in Small Industrial Estate on the Kohat Road here.

The issue was discussed during a meeting with a delegation of Small Industrial Estate, which met SCCI President Maqsood Anwar Pervaiz at the Chamber's House. The delegation apprised the meeting about unnecessary power outages in the industrial estate and asked the SCCI to take up the issue with the Peshawar Electric Supply Company (Pesco) authorities to ensure uninterrupted electricity supply to the small industrial units.

Maqsood Pervaiz slammed the hours-long suspension of electricity loadshedding on the pretext of necessary maintenance work and said it was a major cause of industrial growth stagnation. He maintained that the power outages would lead to closure of the industries. The SCCI chief said the Small Industrial Development Board (SIDB) had already deposited payment in December last year for installation of an independent electricity feeder in Small Industrial Estate.

However, he said, the work was yet to be initiated on the feeder. The industrial growth is already sluggish due to unfavourable conditions in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the SCCI chief said, adding the prolonged electricity suspension would trigger the closure of the established industries and render many people unemployed. He demanded the provincial government and Pesco to ensure uninterrupted electricity supply to Small Industrial Estate. Maqsood Pervaiz said the electricity and gas were prime requirements for the industries, urging the government to take for provision of facilities to industries.