ISLAMABAD: The local administration in the Pakistani capital of Islamabad has ordered all shops and business centers to close by 9pm from Monday for a period of two months, amid a widening power shortfall that has triggered prolonged outages in the South Asian country.
Pakistan, home to 220 million, is currently facing a shortfall of 4,600 megawatts of electricity, which the government of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif blames on the inability of the outgoing Imran Khan administration to complete power projects within a stipulated timeframe.
Extreme heatwaves that scorched Pakistan and India in recent weeks further aggravated the situation, with several cities across the country witnessing planned power outages for several hours a day.
After the Sindh and Punjab provinces, the Islamabad administration also on Sunday announced limiting business hours for markets and business centers as well as wedding halls, restaurants and eateries to reduce electricity consumption in the capital territory.
"Due to hot weather, demand for electricity in Islamabad Capital Territory has increased manifolds subjecting critical infrastructures like hospitals and similar establishments of public importance to extended load shedding," the office of the Islamabad district magistrate said in a notification.
"There is an urgent need to take the effective measures for the conservation of energy in Islamabad Capital Territory by doing business activities in daylight."
All shops, malls, bakeries, offices, storerooms, godowns, warehouses, cattle markets and places of work in Islamabad will close by 9pm, according to the notification.
Wedding halls, marquees and ceremonies are allowed to continue until 10pm, while restaurants, clubs, tandoors, eateries, cafes, cinemas, theatres and amusement parks can stay open till 11:30pm. These businesses can resume working at 6am.
Hospitals, ambulance services, clinics, pharmacies, fuel stations, tyre repair shops, service areas, bus stations, vegetable market and milk shops have been exempted from the restriction.
"Implementation of this order with regard to business timings shall start from tomorrow (20th June 2022)," the office of the Islamabad deputy commissioner said on Twitter.
