SINDH Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has taken a practical move towards fulfilment of the electoral pledges of the PPP to provide electricity free of cost to disadvantaged segments of the society. In a landmark development on Friday, the CM announced plans to provide free electricity to users consuming up to 100 units and to provide solar power systems to off-grid households.
This is, indeed, a major relief for inflation-ridden people as 1.9 million consumers in the province would get substantial benefit besides provision of solar home systems (SHS) to 2.6 million off-grid households. Each SHS, costing approximately 50,000 rupees, would include three LED bulbs, a 35-watt DC fan, and mobile charging ports with a six-hour battery backup. Shah also proposed establishing six micro-grids, each 75 kilowatts, as pilot projects across six divisions, catering to clusters of 100 households. The grids would provide power to homes consuming 100 kilowatts. The Chief Minister is mindful of the fact that all consumers need some sort of relief in view of rising cost of electricity and therefore, issued instructions for setting up of three solar parks of 305 MW each so that cheaper electricity could be provided to K-Electric, HESCO and SEPCO. It is important to note that there were some technical hiccups in the implementation of the commitment to provide free of cost electricity to consumers as electricity pricing is a federal subject but the Sindh Government proved its sincerity by devising a way out. We hope other provinces would also study the good example set by the Sindh Government and implement similar schemes in their jurisdiction. The Punjab Government too has announced provision of free of cost solar panels to those consuming less electricity but the plan of the Sindh Government is more elaborate and people-friendly.
