950825

Karachi

roads to

get lights

by Sept 15

AMANULLAH BASHAR

KARACHI: The majority of Karachi roads, which are without street lights since long, will be put in order by September 15.

The good news emanated from a meeting of the chief engineers of Karachi Electric Supply Corporation (KESC), and Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC), presided over by the Commissioner of the city.

Majority of the Karachi roads, especially in distrcits East, West and Central, plunge into darkness soon after dusk, adding to the miseries of the people of this city whose nerves are already strained due to the unending law and order situation that stubbornly refuses to improve.

The management of street lights, instead of being in the jurisdiction of one organization, is shared by two civic bodies - the KESC and KMC.

The KESC is responsible for providing cable and power while the KMC puts up the bulbs, their shades and other fixtures. This division of responsibility has made a mess of the service with the two organization blaming each other for the lapses.

Accroding to informed sources, the meeting has prepared a priority list of the city roads for repairing street lights and ensuring their proper functioning. These roads include Shahrah Pakistan, Rashid Minhas Road, Surjani Road from Lasbela to Surjani, Gharibabad, Water Pump, Liaquatabad and Qasba Roads, Maripur Road, etc. The KESC will be laying cables 125 kilometres long to serve these roads.

The KMC, according to informed sources, is acquiring scooters, three each for every district, to ensure staff mobility so that they may efficiently look after the street lights in the area.

Sources said that cost of one bulb of sodium (yellow) light at the roundabout costs around Rs 10,000 while murcurry bulbs with fixtures cost around Rs 8,500 each. The problem of the utilities is that these costly bulbs are easily damaged, by rioters or stolen by miscreants.

What the city dwellers are unable to fathom is why, many times, the street lights remain off at night but on in the day time.