Power cuts during Ramadan irk residents

Islamabad: Daily power cuts triggered public protests in different parts of Pakistan on Friday.

The power outages, though a long-running problem in a country plagued by an energy crisis, particularly angered citizens as they began the dawn-to-dusk fasting of Ramadan.

Authorities say the outages are caused by a big gap between demand and production of electricity.

Media reported up to 20-hour long power cuts across northwestern Khyber Pakhthunkhwa province, in districts of Peshawar, Charsasda, Mardan, Swabi, Kohat, Dera Esmail Khan, Karak.

A grid station was reportedly torched by a mob in Charsadda district while district administration offices were set alight in Swabi. Clashes between police and protesters were also reported in several areas.

Power outages were also reported in Karachi, capital of southern Sindh province as well as the cities of Lahore, Multan, Bahawalpur, Gujranwala, Kasur, Sheikhupira, Sahiwal and Okara in central Punjab province.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has expressed disappointment over reports of load-shedding during Iftar and suhour meals of Ramadan, the state broadcaster said.

Sharif directed the Ministry of Power and Water to take immediate steps to address the complaints.

Meanwhile, the ministry has appealed to power consumers to observe electricity conservation.

In a press release the ministry said it is exploring all avenues for optimal load management, adding that it has also chalked out a plan to minimise the overall impact by distributing the load across the country.

Federal Minister of Water and Power Khawaja Mohammad Asif had assured the nation of uninterrupted power supply during critical times throughout Ramadan.

According to the minister power generation on Wednesday had crossed the 16,000MW mark and the demand-supply gap stood at about 3,600MW.