ASADABAD (SW): Residents in eastern Kunar province have complained that electricity is not equally and fairly distributed among the residents in the province.
Salam Watandar correspondent in the province talked to a number of residents in the provincial capital Asadabad in this regard. Mohammad Shafique, a tailor by profession said that hundreds of craftsmen like him have been compelled to use small scale personal power generators that have left negative marks on their businesses. He charged that the provincial authorities only provide public electricity to a handful of influential people.
Recently, he noted that the locals have switched to solar power, which is much more affordable.
Mohammad Asif, another resident said that the locals suffer a lot, particularly in summer when there is no electricity available for fans and other home appliances. “We burn in fire during the summer but the public electricity is only supplied to high-ranking government officials and other influential figures”.
Provincial authorities however, reject these allegations. Abdullah Wali, director for the department of electricity told Salam Watandar that the province has a supply of only 300 kilowatts that is mostly consumed by public offices. He went on to say that there are 35 public offices in the province and each consumes up to 50 kilowatts.
It is worth noticing that the provincial electricity department was set-up some 30 years ago with an installed capacity to supply 700 kilowatts of power but the ageing machinery here now only generate up to 300 kilowatts of power for the province.
Director for the department of electricity in Kunar said that the provincial government has discussed the matter with the President to replace the machinery and lift the power generation capacity. He noted that the cabinet has also promised to resolve the issue.
Development work is underway on a 2000 kilowatt power generation unit that would supply electricity to up to 4000 homes in the province. Abdul Lateef, technical head for the provincial department for electricity fears ongoing work on this project is of poor quality. He regretted that the central government has paid no attention to the complaints registered in this regard.
Kunar residents are complaining about lack of electricity at a time when the province has huge potential for hydro power thanks to the abundant supply of water in the Kunar River that flows to Pakistan.
ENDS
