News Detail

• Scores of people today staged a demonstration in Bandipora district against the erratic power supply in the area. The inhabitants of town and its adjoining villages complained that the erratic power supply not only compounded the difficulties of common people, but also caused immense hardships to the students preparing for various examinations. “Contrary to the government claims that power cuts will be made as per the notified schedule, the electricity here keeps playing hide and seek,” said Waseem Ahmed of Bandipora. He said the children were forced to study under candle light as a result of which many kids had developed eye ailments.
•  The demonstrators said the people were facing lot of inconvenience due to power shortage in the chilling weather conditions. The protestors also threatened that they won’t pay monthly electricity tariff if the concerned Power Development Department failed to streamline the power supply in the district. “If PDD failed to provide electricity according to the schedule, we will take to streets and will observe shutdown,” the protestors added. “The metered areas also face shortage of electricity, although the government had assured them round-the-clock supply,” the residents added. Last week also, hundreds of people in Keema and Aloosa staged protest against the interrupted power supply. The residents of Panzinara Sumbal, Hajin and Markundal area staged a sit-in on Srinagar-Bandipora road disrupting vehicular traffic for hours.
•  Castigating the PDD for ‘ignoring’ Bandipora Town, Traders Federation President, Muhammad Yousuf said, “Power supply in the district remains affected for hours together and the concerned authorities are turning blind eye towards the issue.” Apart from erratic power supply, he said, “The whole power system of PDD in the district has collapsed. I have seen electric lines hanging from tree branches.” Wasim Bin Ahmed, a local businessman, said that frequent power cuts were causing huge losses to their business. Repeated attempts to contact officials in Power Development Department proved futile as they didn’t respond to the phone calls. However, Additional District Development Commissioner Bandipora, Ghulam Muhammad Barkabo, assured that the power supply would be streamlined in the areas, receiving erratic electricity. “I will intimate PDD about peoples’ grievance,” Barkabo said.

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