The FESCO authorities have decided to remove substandard power poles and dangerous tangled wires from the residential areas as they are not only a constant danger for the lives of the citizens but also tarnish the image of the city. The decision was taken at a high-level meeting of the city government officials and Faisalabad Electric Supply Company (FESCO) authorities. The meeting was attended by District Coordination Officer (DCO) Nasim Sadiq and FESCO Board of Directors Chairman Nadeem Aftasb Sindhu who agreed to form a committee to look into the power supply issue to various housing colonies. For this purpose, all the deputy managers (operation) have been asked to furnish their report to identify their respective areas that require immediate attention.
The DCO said the faulty system of poles and cables was impeding the free flow of traffic leading to traffic jams and accidents. He urged the FESCO officials to help remove extra poles and tangled wire to ensure the smooth flow of traffic. Speaking about the background of the problems, the DCO said scores of owners and sponsors of various housing colonies sold plots to the people without providing basic facilities like gas and electricity. “There are reports that this sort of deception prompted the buyers to get electricity from the neighboring areas with their own arrangements and this practice has jeopardised the lives of the citizens,” he revealed.
Sadiq said scores of housing colonies in rural and urban areas were without electricity that required joint efforts to resolve the long-awaited issue of inhabitants of such areas. He directed FESCO officials to devise a strategy for residents of such housing colonies having live wires on their rooftops. FESCO Chief Executive Officer Tariq Mehmood Chattha said all deputy managers would prepare a plan for the housing colonies having no electricity supply to resolve the issue. He formed a committee headed by Manager Operation (First Circle) Khalid Rasheed to look into the issue. He said surplus electricity poles would be removed within a week.
FESCO Board of Directors Chairman Nadeem Aftab Sindhu said the district administration would be extended full cooperation for the beautification of the district. In another relevant development, the Ministry of Interior additional secretary has directed the Punjab inspector general police to beef up security and patrolling around the installations of power distribution companies. The move has been taken after reports of frequent protests and attacks on the property of FESCO and other companies. The masses, especially the industrial workers, have lost patience at the load shedding leading to lockouts in factories.
FESCO sources say the company distributes and supplies electricity to about 2.93 million customers within its territory with a population over 26.5 million under a distribution licence granted by the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) in pursuance of the Regulation of Generation, Transmission and Distribution of Electric Power Act, 1997 (NEPRA Act). Geographical service area of FESCO comprises Faisalabad, Sargodha, Mianwali, Khushab, Jhang, Bhakkar, TT Singh and Chiniot.
Meanwhile, the FESCO chief executive met Regional Police Officer (RPO) Aftab Ahymed Cheema to seek the police help to prevent the thefts of transformers and conductors, causing heavy losses to the company. The RPO assured all the support to tackle the issue and advised the police to keep vigilant on the transportation of heavy electricity material such as transformers, conductors and cables.
