Caretaker Prime Minister Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar called an emergency meeting at Prime Minister House yesterday to discuss the issue of rising electricity bills.
According to the Prime Minister’s post on microblogging platform X – officially known as Twitter – the meeting will include briefings from the Ministry of Energy (Power Division) and distribution companies.
According to PM Kakar, consultations will also be held to provide maximum relief to consumers regarding electricity bills.
بجلی کے بھاری بِلوں کے معاملے پر میں نے کل وزیر اعظم ہاؤس میں ہنگامی اجلاس طلب کر لیا ہے۔ اجلاس میں وزارت بجلی اور تقسیم کار کمپنیوں سے بریفنگ لی جائے گی اور صارفین کو بجلی کے بِلوں کے حوالے سے زیادہ سے زیادہ ریلیف دینے کے حوالے سے مشاورت کی جائے گی۔
— Anwaar ul Haq Kakar (@anwaar_kakar) August 26, 2023
Expensive electricity bills sparked protests across the country, including in Karachi, Rawalpindi, Multan, Gujranwala and Peshawar.
In Karachi, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) staged protests at several locations against skyrocketing electricity bills and overcharging by K-Electric (KE).
Meanwhile, in Rawalpindi, protesters gathered at Committee Chowk and burned bills and demanded the government to abolish the tax imposed on electricity.
Demonstrators in Peshawar demanded relief from the government, calling the increase in electricity bills intolerable.
In Gujranwala, angry protesters against expensive electricity surrounded the office of Gujranwala Electric Power Company.
Protests against high electricity bills were also held in other cities including Narowal, Attock, Sargodha and Haripur.
In July, the then federal cabinet approved a massive hike in the basic electricity tariff to Rs 7.50 per unit against the national average tariff of Rs 4.96 by power regulator National Electric Power Regulatory Authority. . Nepra).
The regulator had hiked tariffs during the current financial year to boost revenue collection for loss-making power distribution companies (Discos).
According to a Nepra statement, the revised national average tariff for the financial year 2023-24 has been fixed at Rs 29.78 per unit kWh, which is Rs 4.96 per unit higher than the previously fixed national average tariff of Rs 24.82.
While the regulator cited rupee depreciation, inflation and interest rates, new capacity additions and overall lower sales as the reasons behind the increase, the increase was actually attributed to the International Monetary Fund (IMF). was done to fulfill one of the conditions laid down by Introducing structural reforms in the energy sector.
However, the applicable tariff will be higher after including monthly and quarterly adjustments plus surcharges, taxes, duties and levies.
