DADU, July 29: A shutdown was observed across Dadu town and its surrounding areas on Monday in protest against unavailability of electricity to consumers most of the day and night hours for quite a few months. The call for the shutdown was given by leaders of various political and nationalist parties and local social welfare organisations after holding a multi-party conference on the issue of load-shedding, frequent breakdowns and what they believed to be ‘artificial’ power cuts in the area.

All main markets, bazaars, commercial areas and shops including Shahi Bazaar, Rai Bazaar, Station Road, Cinema Chowk, Market Road, fruit and vegetable markets, as well as trade and shopping centres, remained closed while main thoroughfares in Dadu towns wore a deserted look. Vehicular traffic on roads remained negligible.

Participants in the conference included the Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F), Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (JSQM), Sindh Taraqqi-pasand Party (STP), Pakistan Peoples Party-Shaheed Bhutto (PPP-SB) and the Shehri Welfare Action Committee.

Activists of the protesting parties and organisations also held a rally against Wapda (Water and Power Development Authority) and Sepco (Sukkur Electric Power Company). Carrying banners and placards inscribed with slogans against outages, they marched through streets of the town from the Municipal Park to the SP Chowk raising slogans against Wapda and Sepco. They also staged a sit-in at the SP Chowk for four hours blocking the main thoroughfare and causing traffic jam on Dadu-Hyderabad Road, Dadu-Moro Road and Dadu-Larkana Road.

The rally was led by Ghulam Mustafa Janwary (who also chaired the conference), Gulsher Solangi, Ashique Ali Pitafi of the PML-F, Comrade Ali Mohammad Jamali of the PPP-SB, Sajjan Magsi of the STP, Imam Bukhsh Vighio of Tailor Masters’ Union, Ghulam Qadir Solangi and Qaim Siyal of the Shehri Ittehad.

Speaking to the protesters Mr Janwary said Wapda and Sepco subjected this part of the province to many spells of load-shedding and artificial outages within 24 hours during the harshest days of summer. He wondered that while the poor of the town remained without electricity most of the day and night but elected representatives of the area were enjoyed a sound sleep in their bungalows not worried at all about the plight of their electorate. He alleged that officials of the power utility in connivance with the elected representatives had created an artificial power crisis in the town.

Gulsher Solangi said that elite and affluent people and influential figures of the area were using illegal connections and consuming free electricity while the common people remained without electricity despite paying their bills and taxes. He regretted that no action was being taken to those using electricity through illegal connections.

Sajjan Magsi lambasted elected representatives of the area for their indifferent attitude towards their voters.

Qaim Siyal said that the outages being experienced by the people of Dadu now spanned a total of 18 hours a day and there was no relief in Ramazan.

Ali Mohammad Jamali said that the power utility was collecting over Rs30 million a month from consumers in Dadu but spending nothing on improving the generation and distribution network.

Ashique Pitafi said that Sepco had collected a huge amount of money from its defaulters offering a 70 per cent waiver but the waived off amount was billed to them in the next month which exposed Sepco’s credibility.

The sit-in was ended when some Sepco officials visited the protesters and assured their leaders of immediate measures towards curtailing outages to bearable level. The officials also invited them to a meeting on Tuesday.