THATTA: The Hyder-abad Electric Supply Company’s (Hesco) Thatta sub-division officials have blamed unabated political interference, outdated and damaged infrastructure, lack of maintenance, insufficient staff and resources for lackluster performance of the power utility.

Sub-division officer (SDO) Ali Raza Kharal, line superintendents Abdul Rehman and Waheed Rind were unanimous in their view that the power facility faced many challenges but despite major problems the Hesco staff had been making strenuous efforts to keep the system working.

SDO Kharal said that despite political constraints, they had recently taken a decisive action against defaulters by confiscating a number of pole-mounted transformers (PMTs), tampered meters and equipment, and registered FIRs against those involved in the theft of copper wire within and without the Hesco. Some officials were found illegally facilitating power consumers, particularly tube-well owners in remote areas, he said.

The FIRs led to prosecution of the culprits, demonstrating Hesco’s commitment to combating corruption and maintaining integrity of the power supply system, he said.

Sources said that Liaquat Institute of Medical and Health Sciences was planning to obtain a dedicated feeder for the area so that the institute could have uninterrupted power supply but corrupt officials in the power utility had other plans. They were already readying themselves for exploiting this ‘opportunity’ in their own favour, said the sources.

Some prominent power consumers of the city, including lawyers Aijaz Ali Jumani, Nadir Brohi, Syed Yasir Shah, Sajjad Behrani, leader of Awami Tehreek Dada Qadir Ranto, the Dawn reporter spoke to, revealed that PMTs’ failures had become a routine, which was often attributed to overload or deliberate tampering by Hesco staff.

They said that consumers were unfairly burdened with financing repairs and maintenance of PMTs, despite this being exclusive responsibility of the power utility.

This practice highlighted a culture of inefficiency and exploitation within the company, further aggravating the challenges faced by Thatta’s residents. PMTs were also illegally installed to facilitate landlords in exchange for heavy bribes, they said.

They said that thousands of tourists, who came to visit Thatta and stayed in local hotels, had to undergo great inconvenience due to prolonged power outages. Businesses dependent on electricity faced huge problems as frequent power outages caused massive losses to traders, scuttling overall economy of the area, they said.

They appealed to Federal Minister for Energy Awais Leghari to intervene, conduct a thorough inquiry, and end chronic power woes of consumers in the coastal city.

Published in Dawn, August 25th, 2024