The purpose of electrical codes and regulations is to ensure smooth power supply with safety. The professionals responsible for the work adhere to these codes to avert any mishaps in the form of electric shock or fire incident. These wiring safety codes are intended to protect the life and property of the consumers from electrical shock and fire hazards.
But unfortunately, the public-sector electricity providers, despite having a comprehensive electric codes and regulations, have failed to insulate naked heavy tension power cables that can bee seen dangling from power poles and pylons in many residential areas of the city.
In the underdeveloped sectors of the city including I-9, I-10 and I-8, the power cables have not been laid underground yet and they pose a threat to the lives of the residents.
Almost the similar criminal negligence on the part of the officials of Islamabad Electricity Supply Company (IESCO) can bee seen at busy marketplaces, where people have to relentlessly avoid contact with electric boxes and a dangling maze of power cables. Most of these electric boxes are never locked and with power cables hanging out of them, the life and property of the residents remain under a constant threat.
The menace is not limited to the unprotected power boxes as one can see at power cables dangling from commercial buildings, even houses, roadside power transformers.
The problem is particularly grave in the commercial district of Blue Area, where electricity meters and naked wires are like landmines fitted along the staircases of many buildings.
Though the IESCO and the Capital Development Authority (CDA) are fully aware of all these dangers yet they have turned a blind eye towards the problem and that is why the recurrence of fire and electric shock incidents have become a deadly routine at the busy commercial centres.
The IESCO has so far conducted no survey whatsoever to locate most sensitive areas and the officialdom in the department has limited the officials’ work to merely addressing the complaints of the citizen. They only look into any matter when a citizen goes to them with a complaint and reports some tragic incident.
The laws require the company to move against the owner of any building where uncovered cables may pose any threat to humans, an IESCO official told this scribe.
Seeking anonymity, he said, the company could issue show-cause notice to any official for negligence in that regard. He said a separate within the IESCO division called Safety Department was responsible for the safety issues.
Some shopkeepers in the in Blue Area told this scribe that they had been there for years and no official ever bothered to visit and ensure removal of those naked power cables. They said the authorities concerned needed to take action against the owners of the buildings that were responsible for any such threats.
Adnan, a resident of Sector I-9 said the residents had lodged several complaints with the competent authorities but to no avail.
Another resident pointed out that most of streetlight poles were without any windows at ground level and cables hanging out of them were a threat to people and particularly to children. The parks and playgrounds areas are also dangerous spots in that regard where an unsuspecting could get an electric shock.
CDA Public Relations Deputy Director Ramzan Sajjid, when contacted, said the IESCO was responsible to maintain electrical safety codes in the commercial areas. He said the CDA was only responsible for streetlights. He hastened to add that the drug addicts and slum dwellers would steal the cover lids off the streetlights, thereby exposing the cables.
