K-Electric has partnered with the Oxford University Press to bring the 10th edition of Karachi Literature Festival 2019 being held from 1st to 3rd March at a local hotel in Karachi. Besides an informative session by KE’s Chief Distribution Officer, Amer Zia during the festival, the power utility also organized its Plant for Pakistan drive and distributed saplings among the attendees in addition to setting up an Energy Conservation kiosk to raise public awareness around energy conservation and promote energy efficiency initiatives.

Speaking on the occasion, Amer Zia, Chief Distribution Officer, K-Electric said, “KE is committed to promote healthy activities and over the years has created several platforms to channelize positive energy of the new generation for the uplift of sports, education, health and other social projects. Our vision encompasses long-term growth not just for our customers and employees, but also for the wider society. Being an integral part of Karachi and a responsible corporate citizen, KE will continue to collaborate and support social movements like KLF in the future too.”

Terming the unplanned expansion of the city a critical challenge he appealed for strengthened urban planning while saying that vertical growth of Karachi added to the unexpected power demand. “Power theft continues to be a big menace which is why our biggest focus is to remove kundas (illegal connections), educate people and bring more and more people on to the grid.” While the power utility’s consistent efforts to curb the menace of power theft and illegal abstraction coupled with investment and upgradation have resulted in provision of reliable power across its network, however encroachments and illegal settlements around power infrastructure remain a critical challenge – creating a hazardous environment. “KE reiterates that illegal hook connections and encroachments around power infrastructure are a potential public safety hazard which also hinder the maintenance of power infrastructure. KE appeals for strong support from respective departments and rigorous enforcement for immediate removal of all illegal networks and infrastructure encroachments so that public safety is not compromised,” he concluded.*

KE, through its CSR initiatives, focuses specially on youth engagement and knowledge sharing. These initiatives aim to impart practical knowledge to students and faculty members from engineering universities. During an industrial visit, students gain an-in depth understanding of KE and how a real-life power plant functions, ensuring a knowledge stream for future engineers. To date more than 9,000 students have been part of KE’s youth engagement platforms.

The organisation also established a first of its kind, state-of-the-art Electrical Engineering Lab at NED University which enables electrical engineering students to gain first-hand practical access to complex electrical equipment, and encourages Research & Development activities. The utility also supports lectures and guest speaker sessions at various universities, and also assists these institutions by sponsoring major events and exhibitions. In addition, students from engineering universities are encouraged to approach KE with ideas and research topics. KE also supports education through charitable activities, and recently donated a fully equipped computer lab to Ra’aana Liaquat Craftsmen Colony.