Islamabad:
Caretaker Prime Minister Anwar-ul-Haq Kakar summoned an emergency meeting at the Prime Minister’s House tomorrow to tackle rising electricity bills.
PM posted on Twitter that the meeting would include Ministry of Energy (Power Division) and distribution company briefings.
PM Kakar said consultations will maximise electricity bill relief for people.
The high electricity bills sparked nationwide protests in Karachi, Rawalpindi, Multan, Gujranwala, and Peshawar.
The Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) protested repeatedly in Karachi about rising power costs and K-Electric overcharging.
Moreover, At Committee Chowk in Rawalpindi, demonstrators burned bills and demanded the government abolish electricity charges.
Unbearable electricity bill increases in Peshawar prompted protests for government relief.
Protesters encircled the Gujranwala Electric Power Company office to protest high electricity prices.
While, Other cities including Narowal, Attock, Sargodha, and Haripur protested exorbitant power bills.
In July, the then federal cabinet gave its go-ahead to a massive increase in the base tariff of electricity by up to Rs7.50 per unit against the national average tariff determination of Rs4.96 by the power regulator National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra).
The regulator raised the rate to boost revenue for loss-making power distribution businesses (Discos) this fiscal year.
According to Nepra, the revised national average pricing for the 2023-24 fiscal year is Rs29.78 per unit kWh, up Rs.4.96 from Rs24.82.
The regulator cited the rupee’s devaluation, high inflation and interest rates, the addition of new capacities, and low sales growth as reasons for the increase, but it was actually raised to meet an IMF condition of energy sector structural reforms.
After surcharges, taxes, tariffs, and levies, plus monthly and quarterly revisions, the tariff would be significantly higher.
