The Pakistani Spectator

Since the KESC has been privatized, the power situation in the city of Karachi, has worsened. Yes it is true that the private company had to take over the mess by the state run KESC but it never seemed to have fulfilled its promises.

The karachiites had faced the same electricity problems and inspite of that, loadshedding sessions seemed to increase day by day. The so called “help-lines” offer no help watsoever rather it is a waste of time to call their numbers and ask for assistance.

Then there is the attitude of the workers. Take for example an area of Defence, which had no electricity for four days straight after the first rainfall of the season. When the KESC Customer Care Office was reached by the people, they fled through the back door leaving people with no one to rectify the problems. A KESC truck was literally captured and brought to the locality when the workers said that the KESC was now private and they had no link with them and it was the departments decision as to where to provide electricity.

I recently read in a newspaper that the KESC had terminated the long term power purchasing agreement with DCL (D.H.A Cogen Plant). The DCL is ready to provide 80 MW to the grid only if the KESC resumes its agreement with DCL and provides it the necessary amount of electricity required to jump start the plant so that it may produce to its full extent. A german engineer who here at the moment will leave and even if the KESC agrees to purchase power from DCL the start up will have to be pushed back to December taking away the much needed relief required by the karachiites. Why the KESC is not resuming its agreement with the DCL irks questions in my mind. May be it is because that they do not want to pay for what they get from DCL?

80 MW could certainly help decrease the amount of load shedding that the karachiites currently have to bear. It is this ignorance of the department that provokes people to come out to the streets and protest resulting in damage of government and public property with losses amounting up to millions of ruppees.

Even if nationalization of KESC is not considered, then maybe steps should be taken against this department if relief is not provided to the consumers, and that too should be done soon.