The novel coronavirus has spread around the globe, sending billions of people into lockdown as health services struggle to cope. Pakistan is facing its biggest challenge ever: how to mobilize its broken state as the number of coronavirus cases rapidly increases across the country. More than ever, the epidemic is showcasing weaknesses in the government.
The Financial hub of Pakistan – Karachi – is one of the worst-affected cities from the coronavirus pandemic. Amid the ongoing fight against the coronavirus pandemic and a burgeoning economic crisis, the people of Karachi are now facing an elderly issue – Load Shedding.
The sole power provider of the metropolis, K-Electric, has always been criticized in this regard. K-Electric has begun testing the already depleting patience of the city’s people due to intermittent power disconnections over the past few days.
The issue of power outages, which was initially reported from the slum areas of the city, has now engulfed the entire Karachi. Load-shedding in multiple areas of the city has increased to over eight hours a day. K-Electric had added to miseries of the citizens amid the coronavirus pandemic by repeatedly suspending power supply for several hours.
The government is imposing a ‘smart lockdown’ and asking people to stay home in order to contain the outbreak, while the KE are forcing people to come out on the streets. On the other hand, karachiites are also facing overbilling.
People are already suffering, especially the virus patients observing self-isolation and those living in hotspot areas under smart lockdown. People across the city are staging protests against the power supplier. However, no action has been taken by the Sindh government or concerned authorities yet. The blame game between K-Electric, the Sui Southern Gas Company, and federal and provincial governments has also started as expected.
K-Electric has also mentioned the reasons behind the power outages. KE claimed that they had been receiving 50 mmcfd RLNG less from the SSGC while the peak demand had crossed 3,450 megawatts. However, The SSGC refuted the claims. The power supplier also claimed that there is an unavailability of furnace oil in the market. But Pakistan State Oil (PSO) responds by saying that they are providing them with it. Meanwhile, the Sindh government blames the Centre for the power crisis in the city.
During this blame game, the people of Karachi are being affected. Who should we blame? Who is responsible? No one knows. In the current context, the karachiites should be provided with a proper supply of electricity, and the federal government should look into this matter and take action against the responsible.
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