KARACHI: K-Electric field teams moved to restore damaged power infrastructure in Gulshan-e-Iqbal after equipment was stolen from a substation in the area, in an incident that has again put the spotlight on the vulnerability of utility assets in Karachi’s densely populated neighbourhoods. The reported theft took place in Block 13-E, where armed suspects, allegedly posing as K-Electric staff, removed copper wiring, transformer bushings, busbars, breakers and other electrical equipment from an apartment building’s substation, according to police.
Police said the robbery happened in the early hours of Sunday and lasted for nearly an hour. Investigators told local media that the suspects arrived in a mini-truck and a car, wearing uniforms, helmets and jackets to resemble utility workers. The building’s watchman and his son were tied up and tortured during the incident, while the suspects escaped with key substation components that are critical for local electricity distribution.
While an official KE statement specifically on this Gulshan-e-Iqbal replacement operation was not available in the search results I could verify, the utility’s public material shows that its field teams are routinely deployed for localized faults, damaged feeder assets and high-risk infrastructure issues across Karachi. KE says teams remain available around the clock for feeder- and PMT-related faults, and its recent monsoon and restoration updates show ground crews being dispatched to restore supply in affected localities, including parts of Gulshan-e-Iqbal.
The Gulshan incident also fits a wider pattern that KE has been highlighting for months: theft, illegal connections and tampering with electricity infrastructure do not just cause financial loss, they also create safety hazards and disrupt routine operations. In multiple public statements, the utility has said illegal connections bypass network safety protocols, strain infrastructure and increase the risk of outages and accidents for residents.
KE has also repeatedly linked theft and non-payment to the loss profile of localities, saying these factors influence load-shedding schedules in affected areas. On its official customer information pages, the company states that feeder losses are determined by electricity theft and bill recovery, and that localized faults can also affect service independently of scheduled load management.
The company’s recent anti-theft record underlines the scale of the challenge. KE said in September 2024 that, in coordinated operations with law-enforcement agencies, it removed 800 illegal connections in Surjani Town and Korangi Industrial Area, warning that such installations endanger both the system and the public. In other reported operations, KE has said large numbers of illegal connections were removed from areas including Gulshan-e-Iqbal as part of citywide drives.
That is really the bigger story here. A theft like the one reported in Gulshan-e-Iqbal is not just a crime scene; it can directly affect residents waiting for supply to return, technicians tasked with making the network safe again, and already-stressed infrastructure in a city where utility access remains deeply uneven. Based on KE’s documented operating pattern, replacing stolen components and restoring the affected setup would be a necessary first response before the system could be considered stable again. That last point is an inference from KE’s published restoration and field-response procedures, not a directly quoted statement on this specific case.
Police said CCTV footage had been collected and a search operation was under way. The truck allegedly used in the robbery was also reported to have been stolen from another part of the city. As of the reporting I could verify, investigators were still working to trace and arrest the suspects.
