ISLAMABAD: Secretary Power Division Rashid Langriyal on Sunday announced to end the facility of providing free electricity to the officers of Grade 17 and above of Power Distribution Companies (Discos).
Briefing the journalists in Islamabad on various issues related to the power sector, Secretary Langriyal said that a summary of the decision will be prepared soon.
In July, the Public Accounts Committee (PAC) had recommended ending the free electricity facility to all government officers and employees in grades 16 to 22.
Apart from this, Caretaker Prime Minister Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar will call an emergency meeting today (Sunday) at the Prime Minister’s House in which the issue of increasing electricity bills will be considered.
Expensive electricity bills sparked protests across the country, including in Karachi, Rawalpindi, Multan, Gujranwala and Peshawar. Protesters burnt their electricity bills, blocked causeways and surrounded the offices of electricity distributors demanding relief to the people.
During the press briefing, Secretary Langriyal also drew attention to the problem of defects in the electricity system and said that they need to be removed.
He also shed light on the problem of electricity theft and circular debt which is currently Rs 2300 billion.
Power sector officials present during the press briefing also spoke about power theft, which is estimated to be around Rs 250 billion in the country.
“Net metering is a means of increasing capacity payments, but at some point it will have to be phased out,” officials added.
Officials also addressed the issue of rising electricity bills and opined that the main reason for the increase in electricity rates is the continuous depreciation of the local currency against the US dollar.
During the PAC meeting in July, the audit paras relating to the Power Division of the Ministry of Power for the financial years 2020-21 and 2021-22 were reviewed.
The committee expressed its deep displeasure over not ending the free electricity supply to WAPDA employees and decided to write a letter to the Prime Minister on the matter and recommend to the Prime Minister to end the free facility to all officers of grades 16 to 22. .
The then chairman of PAC, Noor Alam Khan, said, “The poor pay heavy electricity bills, but the elite are being provided with free electricity,” adding that MPs should either get free electricity or free gas. do not get the facility of
Khan said that free electricity should be abolished for officers from grade 16 to 22 as the country loses Rs 9 billion annually. He further said that he will raise the issue of free electricity in the National Assembly.
The PAC chairman asked the Secretary Power Division to conduct an inquiry into the ongoing losses in the power sector and identify those responsible for the losses.
