THEY say the pen is far mightier than the sword, and that might be true in most cases. However, there are situations when it is no walk in the park for writers — irrespective of the strength of their pen — to sway the minds of the public. Arshi Ahmad Aziz endeavours to achieve such a feat in From KESC to K-Electric. Any ordinary citizen of Karachi would be able to immediately relate to the gloomy description of the scene that the writer brings forth at the outset of the book: a man comes home after work to find his family suffering due to power outages, making living conditions excruciatingly unbearable.

The book has many such real-life incidents. Aziz sheds light on the many lives of people in Karachi; some work for KESC at the managerial level and as clerical staff, others work for the union and their viewpoint is given space too. Aziz also includes those in the book who suffer on a regular basis due to endless load-shedding: an elderly, retired gentleman who simply wishes for a working fan so that he can sleep peacefully; a housewife who merely wants to enjoy a few television shows once her day is over; and a student who wants to score well in the exam the next morning. The writer has made sure, however, that the identities of these characters remain anonymous by giving them pseudonyms.

Such incidents and examples abet in captivating the readers and provide the necessary balance which is required as certain chapters are present that deal with dry and technical issues such as energy generation, its distribution, and procedures associated with it.

Highlighting such bleak situations that Karachiites face on a daily basis does give those readers who do not reside in the city something to ponder over. However, readers who live in Karachi and are therefore well aware of such incidents might find themselves breezing through the content at a brisk pace as there are times when certain incidents unnecessarily overlap, and could have been omitted during the final edit.

The book is structured well and is divided into 17 chapters that deal with various facets of KESC such as its history, transformation, privatisation, corruption, remedial strategies, successful projects and controversies. Aziz has done a commendable job as far as research is concerned; many interviews have been conducted to present the dramatic story of a company which is now a little over a century old.

Another highlight of the book is the courage on the part of the writer in portraying the inappropriate culture at KESC that has been prevalent for the last few decades, and has haunted the organisation as well as its customers. On many occasions, the writer pens down general incidents where customers have been kept waiting for months without any response to their queries, bribery, power theft, threats, staff members working at multiple jobs and seldom attending office, etc.

The same valour, however, is lacking to a certain extent when the writer cites specific cases of corruption that created controversies, became newspaper headlines, and eventually modified the structure and face of the company.

Similarly, the concluding chapter, in which the writer makes an attempt to forge a connection between the dismal state of the family described in the first chapter, and how it changed over the years due to KESC’s — now K-Electric — successful projects, carefully planned distribution and highly courteous customer services, appears to be far-fetched. Most readers will find it hard to believe that there is some vicinity in Karachi where there is a constant supply of electricity, and all the households are completely at peace.

By and large, it is an enjoyable and knowledgeable book which provides food for thought for readers; and for K-Electric’s critics, there are a few debatable elements present that would surely keep them occupied for weeks.

From KESC to K-Electric: A Company Reborn

(BUSINESS)

By Arshi Ahmad Aziz

Markings, Lahore

ISBN 978-969-9251-55-9

305pp.