The Ashgabat khyakim have enough human and technical resources to dismantle air conditioners and satellite aerials, to pull out shade trees and shrubs, and exterminate dogs and cats. However, uninterrupted electric power and water supply is beyond the powers of the capital’s khyakim.
Last week public utilities employees, with their inherent zeal, tore off satellite aerials throwing them down so that it will be impossible to restore them. The inhabitants, who are accustomed to such barbarous actions of the municipal authorities, only observed what was going on. In conversations neighbours cursed both performers and the authorities who are destroying private property of residents rather than addressing urgent problems of the population.
Meanwhile, on the night of 13 May the water supply was cut off again in several Ashgabat districts, including residential districts Mir-1, Mir-2, Mir-3, Mir-5 and Gaudan. The water supply was resumed only in the evening, after 7 p.m. During this time only one water truck arrived and needless to say, there was not enough water for everyone.
In the afternoon of 13 May the electricity went off for several hours in the 9th, 10th and 11th residential districts. Power supply was restored only late in the evening.
Such outages have been taking place in the capital for many years on a regular basis.
The situation is much worse in the provinces. Rural inhabitants say that power and gas supply is more often missing than is available. In the majority of Turkmen villages water supply networks have not been installed.
