Power cut takes toll on city dwellers

Kathmandu, January 17:

The life of people in the capital is in a disarray due to the daily six-hour load shedding.

“It feels like we are living in the most remote past of the country where people were living without electricity,” said Menaka Pokharel of Jorpati, a homemaker. She complained water tanks are empty; drinking water could not pumped up to the tanks. Kitchen appliances like rice cookers are of no use, she said, adding, “It’s winter now and we can’t even use heaters. We have been deprived of the luxuries we were accustomed to.”

Students, preparing to appear for SLC, bachelor’s and master’s examinations, find it equally hard to study under candlelight. Upendra Ghimire, a master’s level student said, “My final exam is drawing near. Instead of preparing for it I spend most of my time sleeping when it gets dark.”

He added reading under candlelight gets difficult, “And not everyone can afford an inverter or a generator.”

For service holders, load shedding has increased their workload, said Anu Upadhyay, a media person. “Most of our office work is done using computers, and due to the power cuts works get piled up and we have to work at odd hours to meet deadlines.”

NEA increased load shedding from 15 hours a week to 36 hours a week, from January 10, which means six hours a day for six days every week.

“This heavy load shedding is a shame for our country which is said to be one of the richest in hydropower,” said Harendra Bahadur Shrestha, president of Nepal Consumers’ Forum.

Such carelessness over one of the basic needs of people shows inaptness and insensitivity of the government towards the society’s welfare, he said.