Official work, online systems, and public services in education offices across Pakistan’s Sindh province have been severely disrupted by prolonged power outages lasting nearly three weeks. Despite officials confirming payment of all electricity bills and repeated complaints to K-Electric, the outages persist, impacting various key offices. The affected offices include the Directorate General Colleges Sindh, Regional Directorate Government Colleges Sindh, Directorate General Private Institutions Sindh, and Regional Directorate Private Schools Karachi, where routine operations are hindered by hours-long load-shedding during office hours.
The power disruptions have led to significant challenges, affecting computer-related tasks, internet connectivity, and printing services. This has resulted in difficulties with online registration for private schools, issuance of certifications, handling complaints, and managing admissions in government colleges. Among the most impacted is the Directorate of Inspection and Registration of Private Institutions on Burns Road, where employees struggle to maintain daily operations amidst recurrent power cuts. Electricity is only available from 11 am to 2 pm daily, with another shutdown occurring after 4 pm, exacerbating the situation.
Officials have highlighted that the power outages have crippled modern online office systems, rendering computer, internet, and printing facilities inoperable during outages. This has impeded the daily government work processes, despite efforts to clear outstanding electricity dues and raise complaints with K-Electric. However, effective measures to address the issue are yet to be implemented. Urgent action is being urged to ensure uninterrupted power supply during office hours and resolve technical challenges promptly.
Residents in Pakistan’s Punjab province have also been grappling with unannounced power outages amidst soaring temperatures, leading to hardships for both business owners and residents. The outages have resulted in several hours of power cuts, causing damage to electronic appliances like air conditioners, refrigerators, televisions, and water motors due to power fluctuations and low voltage. Areas such as Gulberg, Green Town, Johar Town, Baghbanpura, Township, Garden Town, China Scheme, Anarkali, and Baghbanpura have reported persistent power interruptions and unstable voltage, with delays in power restoration. Additionally, suburban areas and cities served by the Lahore Electric Supply Company (LESCO) have experienced unscheduled power outages.
LESCO has faced scrutiny from residents over the outages, despite assuring adequate electricity supply to meet demand. The utility has denied any declared or undeclared load-shedding in Lahore, attributing power cuts to scheduled shutdowns for development work and high-loss feeders rather than electricity shortages.
