Gas shortage

Gas shortage: human ingenuity comes to consumers` rescue




The
most common gadget used to improve gas pressure is the attachment of
fridge compressors with the gas pipeline.-Photos by Tanveer Shahzad and
Kalbe Ali



ISLAMABAD:
Human ingenuity is coming to the help of the hapless people of northern
Pakistan to overcome the misery brought by the gas shortage in their
region.
`This is a new crisis that we have ever faced,
said Asmat Zehra, a resident of Rawalpindi. `We have seen prolonged
electricity outages, severe water scarcity but there has never been
16-18-hour-long gas loadshedding daily.
For many areas, mainly in
northern Punjab, where mercury has been hovering around zero degree
Celsius, people are taking to various means not only for heating but
also for cooking.
`Most of the time my husband does the cooking
after midnight; however, I keep all the raw materials prepared for it,`
she said.Like Ms Zehra, the situation has forced many households to shun
the traditional taboo that it`s the women who are in-charge of the
kitchen come what may. Everyone, even children are making adjustments in
their lifestyles.
`Since it is cold after the evening, we all
huddle together in one room for warmth,` said a child, Mahnoor who lives
in Pindora locality ofRawalpindi. Some have no other options but to
place the cooking pot on the gas stove and wait for hours as it has a
very low flame.
Apart from the adjustments in their routine life,
people are also seeking different ways to cope with the severe gas
shortage though many of these `innovations` are either illegal or
socially not acceptable.
COMPRESSORS: The most common gadget used to improve gas pressure is the attachment of fridge compressors with the gas pipeline.
With
the inlet fixed to the gas connection, the outlet of the compressor is
attached with the stove or burner and it pulls the gas with pressure.
`This
is the most cost effective way to have gas either for cooking or
heating,` said a seller at an electronic market near Naz Cinema in
Rawalpindi. Though not very reliable, the compressors are gaining
popularity mainly among workshops etc. However, two main reasons for
limited popularity of the compressors are its prices and unreliability.
Costing
between Rs6,000 and Rs11,000 depending on the size and brand the
compressors are not considered as a cheap option for the ordinary
household.
The other key reason why people tend not to use the compressors for pulling gas is the risk attached to it.
`I
always feel uneasy leaving my wife and children with an electric
appliance pulling and pushing gas all near the stove,` said a LPG
cylinder buyer in Karachi Company, Islamabad.
TRANSFORMERS: As
the gas shortage worsened with the onset of the chilling weather, the
Chinese transformers are the latest and the newest introduction in the
market.
Originally built to regulate the flow of gas from any
source, including LPG cylinders for heaters, these electricity-operated
transformers have functions similar to the compressors but with a
regulator to maintain the outflow level.
`The fridge compressors
are like time bombs. If the gas pressure increases what will happen to
the burner: you can imagine yourself, said Saeed Ahmed, the owner of an
electronic appliances shop in Karachi Company. `But this device has
pressure levels and also controls the outflow like the electricity
transformer.
Either the Chinese sellers saw its market in Pakistan
or the importers were looking to make fortune from these gas
transformers: it is safer, handy and comes at a comparatively cheaper
price at around Rs3,500 per piece. But the Chinese state-of-the-art
product has no working guarantee.
However, like the compressors,
the use of transformers is not only illegal but is also unethical as
these appliances suck in all the gas from the area pipelines leaving
nothing for other houses.
FIRE POT: The prolonged
and regular gas shortage has made another turn in social fabrics and
expertise of senior citizens. Those who have spent time in rural areas
are for burning fire in traditional `anghitee.
Though the art of
lighting and maintaining the fire pot is ahnost forgotten in the urban
areas, a large number of people are again turning to it.
`First we
burn pieces of wood in a tray on the roof and when the fire becomes
charcoal and all its toxic smoke is gone, we bring the tray inside to
warm the house,` said Riffat Abbasi, of Rawalpindi. She learned all
these skills as a young girl in her parents` house in Murree.
`But
it is very difficult during rain as we do not have enough space for
such kind of work in city houses,` she added. `Besides, it is always a
hassle to wash those smoke-coated vessels.
The demand for firewood
has made even the junk furniture and other combustible items costly,
whereas commercial users are buying wood at around Rs450 per 40
kilogrammes. The prices have gone up by Rs100 in one month and continue
to rise.
Despite various methods and practices being adopted by
the citizens, the most common and comfortable alternative to natural gas
is the liquefied petroleum gas (LPG). However, due to its soaring
prices, the residents are not in a position to use it

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