By By M. Waqar Bhatti
Intermittent power load-shedding plagued the city again on Tuesday. They were attributed to the frequent tripping of lines and cable faults in addition to routine load management by Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) spokesperson Ayesha Eirabie.
She further said that the KESC’s transmission system of KESC needed urgent repair and maintenance which was under way, and this is resulting in power breakdowns in some areas.
Citizens from many city areas including F.B Area, Buffer Zone, North Karachi, Liaquatabad, Nazimabad, Gulshan-e-Iqbal, Gulistan-e-Jauhar, PECHS, Garden, SITE, Malir and some other colonies reported power failures of six to eight hours on Tuesday. They criticised the federal government as well as the KESC for exorbitant electricity charges and said that despite an increase in the electricity tariff, the KESC had failed to provide uninterrupted power.
Shopkeepers at various markets in the city also complained of power breakdowns and vowed to mobilise their associations against the KESC in order to have continuous power supply on affordable prices.
“I don’t understand why the KESC is resorting to load-shedding when nobody is using air conditioners (Acs) or even fans. What we know is that electricity demand reduces to half in winters but we still have the same situation as it is in the hot summer season,” said Mrs Sadia, a resident of F.B Area Block 20.
It is learnt that two units of the KESC’s Bin Qasim Power Plant have been closed while those functioning are also not performing up to their maximum output. The KESC spokesperson maintained that Independent Power Producers (IPPs) were not providing the required electricity either owing to their own maintenance and repair requirements.
Eirabie further said the KESC disconnected electricity to Awami Markaz on Tuesday because there were Rs21 million dues outstanding on it. The electricity was restored, however, after the management promised to clear the dues within 16 days.