80pc localities in Pindi facing low to zero gas pressure

Rawalpindi: The government plan to provide natural gas for domestic users at least to prepare three times meal has flopped because the supply of natural gas to domestic consumers has vanished from over 80 per cent localities of the city and cantonment board areas. Long queues of people could be seen on all ‘tandoors’ and hotels to buy ‘Roti’ and ‘Salan’ here on Friday.

Consumers are also facing an artificial shortage of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) for three days. The dealers are also taking full benefit of this ‘situation and creating an artificial shortage to increase the prices of commodities. The shopkeepers are selling LPG in ‘black’ at Rs250 to Rs270 per kilogram.

The new issue is that there was no pressure in LPG as compared to previous years. The dealers are providing sub-standard commodities to consumers. Meanwhile, the woodcutters are selling 40 kilogram dry woods from Rs750 to Rs800. One kilogram of coal is available at Rs100 and 1-liter kerosene oil at Rs200.

Sui Northern Gas Pipelines Limited (SNGPL) Senior General Manager (Rawalpindi Region) Mukhtar Shah told ‘The News’ that they were trying to provide gas supply to all consumers at least three times a day to prepare food. The consumers would face difficulties in December, January, and February because of harsh weather. But, we will try to provide them with natural gas, he assured.

The areas of Shah Faisal, Shah Khalid, Adiala Road, Qasim Market, Misriyal, Chakra, Satellite Town, Jhanda, Mareer Hasan, Sher Zaman Colony, Munawar Colony, Mubarak Lane, Dhoke Juma, New Lalazar, Tahli Mohri, Defence Road, Saleha Street, Dhoke Kala Khan, Gulistan Colony, Naik Alam, Dhoke Manga Khan, Kashmir Colony, Gulshanabad, Bakramandi, Dhamyal, Quaid-e-Azam Colony, Arya Mohalla, Tipu Road, Lalkurti, Tench Bhatta, Jan Colony, Dhoke Ratta, Dhok Munshi, Rehmatabad, Dhoke Banaras, Sadiqabad, Muslim Town, Tipu Road, Raheemabad and several other localities are facing low to zero gas pressure.

The consumers of affected localities in the recent past have protested in front of the Sui Northern Gas Pipeline Limited (SNGPL) office on regular basis but in vain. The protesters raised slogans against SNGPL and demanded the provision of full pressure gas.

Muttahidda Naanbais Welfare Association (MNWA) President Muhammad Shafiq Qureshi said that the government is increasing prices of domestic and commercial gas cylinders which were unaffordable for a common man to purchase, he said. Over 30 per cent of Naanbais have quit their businesses due to increasing prices of flour, dry wood, LPG, and absence of natural gas but our government is taking the issues non-seriously, he denounced.

Talking to ‘The News’ consumers of all areas have appealed to Prime Minister Imran Khan to provide them at least basics of life, like natural gas, electricity, and water. How we could survive without all these basics of life, people questioned. They also said that they were facing one after another with every passing day for over three years.