{
  "id": 4355698,
  "title": "Rights activists decry excessive loadshedding in low-income areas of Karachi",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/30/rights-activists-decry-excessive-loadshedding-in-low-income-areas-of-4355698",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-30T02:00:59.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Dawn - Pakistan",
    "slug": "dawn-pakistan",
    "url": "https://www.dawn.com/news/2026088/rights-activists-decry-excessive-loadshedding-in-low-income-areas-of-karachi"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Karachi's low-income communities have endured prolonged and excessive loadshedding, severely impacting their daily lives, according to rights activists and civil society members. During a press conference at the Karachi Press Club, speakers highlighted the disruption of children's education, difficulties in cooking, washing, bathing, and maintaining personal hygiene due to the frequent power outages. The issue came to a head during a week of protests and traffic jams, with residents from various areas, including Lyari, the old city, Baldia, Orangi, Korangi, SITE, and Sohrab Goth, demanding an end to the excessive loadshedding.\n\nNorth Karachi, Nazimabad, and parts of Gulistan-i-Jauhar experienced 16 to 24 hours of power outages per day. K-Electric's loadshedding schedule on its website indicated that up to 12 hours of outages were occurring daily on more than 615 feeders, affecting around one-third of the city's feeders. Qazi Khizer from the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan emphasized the strain loadshedding places on working-class neighborhoods, contributing to mental stress, which is one of the highest in the world. He stressed that electricity is a necessity, not a luxury.\n\nAbbas Haider from the Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research (Piler) pointed out the negative impact on informal workers residing in industrial areas like Baldia, SITE, Korangi, and other locations. Prolonged loadshedding leaves these workers drained of energy, sleep, and rest, leading to reduced performance at work and an increase in workplace accidents. Tahir Hassan Khan, President of the Karachi Union of Journalists, questioned the benefits of privatization, stating that K-Electric has failed to deliver reliable and consistent electricity despite claims of improvements.\n\nNajma Maheshwari, a Lyari-based social activist, highlighted the disproportionate burden on women in the area due to prolonged power outages and inadequate water availability. Women have to purchase water even for basic tasks like washing clothes, and the financial stress of managing everyday life becomes increasingly brutal. The lack of water due to loadshedding exacerbates skin and reproductive health issues among children in the area. Zeenia Shaukat from The Knowledge Forum criticized the public debate, which has focused excessively on electricity theft and recovery, suggesting that the focus should shift to accountability for the electricity system and protecting customers.",
  "summary": "KARACHI: Rights activists and members of civil society have said prolonged and excessive loadshedding had made everyday life increasingly difficult for Karachi’s low-income communities, disrupting children’s education and making cooking, washing, bathing and maintaining personal hygiene a daily struggle. They were speaking at a press conference organised under the banner of the Civil Society…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Dawn",
        "title": "Rights activists decry excessive loadshedding in low-income areas of Karachi",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/30/rights-activists-decry-excessive-loadshedding-in-low-income-areas-of",
        "published": "2026-08-30T02:00:59.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}