KARACHI: Prolonged power cuts continued in Karachi on Friday as well, adding to the citizens' woes amid prevailing hot weather in the megapolis.
A protest was staged over prolonged outage near Baba Ghaib Shah shrine in the city's Keamari area. The demonstration resulted in brief suspension of flow of traffic.
Other areas hit by power cuts included Hassan Square, Gulshan Iqbal, Malir, Gulistan-e-Jauhar, Lines Area.
A spokesperson for K-Electric, the sole power distributor in the megapolis, has said that the power shortfall occurred due to suspension of gas supply. The spokesperson apologised for the inconvenience caused by power outages.
Meanwhile, Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) spokesperson asked the K-Electric not to blame it for load-shedding. The gas company also refused to provide additional gas to K-Electric during Pakistan-West Indies T20i series.
Minister of Power Division Awais Laghari has taken notice of the ongoing tiff between the SSGC and K-Electric. He directed both the organisations to find an immediate solution to the issue.
The minister directed K-Electric to ensure early payment of dues to the SSGC, so that the citizens could have uninterrupted power supply. He directed K-Electric to take all possible measures to facilitate consumers.
Laghari further directed National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) to play its role in ending power outages, so that the citizens of Karachi may not have to bear the brunt of K-Electric and SSGC issues.