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Abdullah Haroon Rd shopkeepers burn KESC vehicle, tear gassed

Staff Report

KARACHI: Angry shopkeepers in Saddar set fire to a KESC vehicle, after yet another long power outage in the area, Thursday.

According to the shopkeepers on Abdullah Haroon road, many of the markets had been without electricity all morning, following which at about 2 p.m. most of them decided to close their shops and take to the streets.

Violence erupted two hours into this protest as shopkeepers started pelting stones at police mobiles and other vehicles. The protesters then set fire to tyres as a group of enraged men also set ablaze a KESC complaint truck.

The police were forced to use tear gas and retaliate with stones, however they failed to curtail the violence, which continued throughout the evening. A situation of attack and counter-attack resulted between the police and the protesters, as either party began to take cover when the other attacked and then launch its own attack when they felt relatively safe.

As the protest crossed the four-hour mark, a massive traffic jam was seen in different parts of the city as traffic policeman started diverting traffic away from Saddar. Among the areas most affected were Fowara Chock, Metropole, MA Jinnah road and Shahrah e Quaideen.

Meanwhile, the Federal Minster Babar Khan Ghouri and other Muttahida Qaumi Movement leaders reached Saddar. After negotiations with the protestors, the situation was finally brought under control as the protestors agreed to disperse.

Nonetheless, the shopkeepers complained that they were facing losses because of the government. “When are we to earn a living, when markets are without electricity in the day, and the government wants us to shutdown in the night by 8 p.m.,” they complained.

Shopkeepers stage protest, set KESC vehicle on fire: Angry shopkeepers held a sit-in protest and rallies after an eight-hour power failure in Saddar Thursday.

A large number of them converged in a protest rally on Abdullah Haroon Road, shouting slogans against the KESC management and pelting stones at the corporation’s head office. Some aggressive participants also burned one of the vehicles parked outside the office.

KESC spokesman, Syed Sultan Hassan, said that the prolonged power shutdown happened in Saddar near the General Post Office (GPO) after a fault developed in one of the major underground cables. He said that when a KESC vehicle reached the site for repairs, the mob set fire to the truck, injuring KESC employees.

Responding to a question, Hassan said that presently the city’s demand for electricity has reached 2,350MW, including an increase of 150MW over the last 10 days. “The city is facing a 395MW shortage for which KESC has started 5-hour long announced load shedding,” he said, adding that this would continue if demanded increased. Hassan said that if the shopkeepers in the city have to close their shops at 9.00pm, KESC will save around 80MW of power but the results are not forthcoming.

Hundreds of shopkeepers from Tariq Road also protested after closing their shops around 7.30pm. The rally was organized by the Tariq Road Traders Action Committee and the traders marched from Dolmen Center to Liberty Chowk, where they staged a sit-in. Some shopkeepers also set ablaze tires. Others held up placards inscribed with slogans to condemn unannounced load shedding. They also shouted slogans against the KESC management.

Due to the rally on Tariq Road, traffic was suspended on all adjacent roads, including Allama Iqbal Road, Khalid bin Waleed Road and others, for hours. A heavy contingent of police as well as traffic police officials failed to maintain order. The Tariq Road Traders’ Action Committee chairman, Siddique Memon, said that they rejected the federal government’s load management plan to forcibly close all commercial activities in the city. “Earlier, the KESC management verbally assured us that it would avoid load shedding in the day time, but during the last couple of days, the shopkeepers of Tariq Road faced around two- to six-hour power breakdowns. Due to this, the situation is worsening and we are facing a great loss as the business activities have been reduced,” said Memon.

He mentioned that some of the shopkeepers have started to fire their daily wages workers to reduce their losses. He also announced that they will continue their business activities till midnight without any barrier and will not bear any pressure from the government.

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