Farmers block all highways against load-shedding

The Baloch Hal News

QUETTA: Normal traffic remained paralyzed for the whole day throughout Balochistan responding to the strike call given by Zamindar Action Committee here on Monday.

All the major highways and roads were blocked by the growers and farmers in all the six regions of Balochistan making the wheel jam strike deadly effective and criplling.

Thousands of small and big vehicles stuck on the highways and people, particularly passengers, faced great trouble as the enraged protesters blocked the routes for the whole day and without any relief to any one.

The logistic support to the NATO forces in Afghanistan was also disrupted on Monday as a result of the massive strike. The strike made long queue of trailers, containers and passenger buses and other vehicles till the sun sets and on all the major highways of Balochistan.

The strike was observed in Quetta, Mastung, Chaman, Kila Abdullah, Loralai, Chagai, Kalat, Khuzdar, Surab, Kharan, Lasbela, Bolan, Sibi, Barkhan and other parts of the province.

The annoyed protesters also organized sit-in protests on the railway lines and national highways and put up barricades to block the flow of normal traffic in various parts of the province.

Chairman of Zamindar Action Committee Taj Mohammad Agha said if the duration of load shedding is not reduced substantially, than we would take more severe action giving deep shocks to the Government. He said over 20 hours load shedding is being carried out throughout Balochistan for the past 21 days which destroyed the standing corps. “Chief Minister assured and gave a deadline on last Thursday but it was not honoured,” he said adding that government should come up to the promises made to the growers and provide 15 hours of supply of electricity without any interruption.”

Quetta Electric Supply Company (QESCO) Chief Shaifiq Khatak said the repair work had started and it would take approximately a week more to revive the electricity supply to the affected areas of province. “Government was not providing adequate security to the WAPDA officials that caused delay to repairing the destroyed power pylons,” he added.

According to sources, seven power pylons of 220 KV transmission lines were destroyed in Chattar Tehsil of Naseerabad some three weeks back disrupting power supply to 40 grid stations of the province. It was not confirmed whether the power pylons were affected due to subversive act or thunderstorm. The growers doubt the statement of the QESCO chief.