Protests against inflated bills: No relief yet for consumers

Islamabad: The caretaker government could not provide any relief to the electricity consumers so far, the sources privy to the development said on Tuesday.

The sources said that the government decided to provide relief to the consumers using 400 units electricity but the approval would be sought from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

The decision to seek permission  or approval from the IMF surfaced during the meeting of the federal cabinet with Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaaru Haq Kakar in the chair.

The consumers, they said, could be allowed to pay their bills in installments during the next six months.

On other hand, the protests continued against the inflated bills across the country. The citizens and even the people belonging to the rural areas were angry this time over sky-rocketing electricity bills.

The IMF, they said, would be approached for permission to give relief to the electricity consumers using 400 units, and the announcement for the relief for the consumers would be made after the fund’s validation.

Earlier, the federal cabinet deliberated over the countrywide protests against the inflated electricity bills. The country’s economic situation and formula of the power division also came under discussion during the meeting.

The meeting also deliberated the matter of free electricity and monetization. During the briefing by the Power Division, it was disclosed that employees within Grades 17 to 21, totaling 15,971, consume 70 lakh units of free electricity on a monthly basis. Similarly, employees in Grades 1 to 16 collectively utilize 33 crore units of free electricity each month. Additionally, a staggering 1,732,200 government employees benefit from 10 billion rupees' worth of free electricity annually.

The briefing highlighted that employees within Grades 17 to 21 consume free electricity units amounting to 125 crore rupees annually. Meanwhile, those in Grades 1 to 16 collectively utilize free electricity units worth 76 crore and 43 lakh rupees on a monthly basis.

During the briefing from the Power Division, it was asserted that discontinuing free electricity for employees within Grades 17 to 21 would result in a monthly saving of 190 million rupees. Incorporating the equivalent value of free electricity units into their salaries would narrow this disparity even further.