LAHORE - As the temperature rises to 44 degree Celsius here in the provincial metropolis on Saturday, Pakistan Electric Power Company (PEPCO) resorted to massive and unannounced loadshedding, adding the woes and miseries of the masses in sizzling heat. The Pepco officials said that they resorted to massive and unannounced laodshedding to manage power deficit that reached above 5000MW in the country on Saturday. The 14 to 18-hour power breakdown paralysed the routine life in the City while badly affecting the business activities across the provincial metropolis. The small traders and shopkeepers are the worst victims of the massive power outages. The local residents said that even after the government increased electricity tariff manifold, putting extra-burden on the already inflation-hit public, the authorities have badly failed to improve electricity generation. We cant work during loadshedding. We have to wait for hours for electricity resumption to start work. If we will not work, who will feed our children? questioned Mushtaq Ahmed, an electrician and mechanic in Johar Town area. There was four-hour continuous loadshedding after every hour in various parts of the City on Saturday, which led to water shortage as people were witnessed running towards nearby shops to fetch drinking water. The worst power outages on Saturday forced the people to take to streets here in various parts of the provincial metropolis. The power outages are badly affecting all segment of the society particularly the traders, shopkeepers, office-goers, students, businesses and even the under treatment patients at various public and private hospitals. The congested residential localities like Islampura, Sanda, Samanabad, Iqbal Town, Sabzazar, Johar Town, Wahdat Colony, Kot Lakhpat, Shalimar and Baghbanpura areas are the most affected vicinities, where LESCO has resorted to 18-hours breakdown. But the posh neighbourhoods of Model Town, Township, Garden Town, Muslim Town, Gulberg and Defence have also fell victim to the most unwanted routine. Has the government any plan to improve electricity generation to get rid of massive loadshedding? Apparently it seemed that they are not serious to overcome the most serious people being faced by the people, Rehan Mumtaz, a college teacher commented, when contacted. He said that the political leaders are engaged in non-issues like 18th amendment and renaming of province due to the their personal interests while totally ignoring the real problems. It (loadshedding) often results in water shortage as the Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) cannot run its tube-wells during the outages, Ahmed Khan, a resident of Sabzazar said. A housewife Khurshid Bibi of Iqbal Town was of the view that they were suffering a three-hour power shutdown after every one hour. On the other hand, a good number of people staged strong protest demonstrations in various parts of the Punjab province and chanted anti-government slogans. The protesters also condemned the Ministry of Water of Power for its failure to improve power supply despite the lapse of two years. They said that the government has badly failed to deliver and the present rulers should be taken to task, as they could not fulfil their promises, made during the election campaign and after they came into power.