IT is a matter of satisfaction that the Governments of two provinces – Punjab and Sindh – are in a healthy competition to provide relief to the electricity consumers in the face of unbearable power bills. In line with its previous announcement, the Punjab Cabinet on Thursday formally approved a relief of Rs. 46 billion to electricity consumers for August and September. And PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, at a ceremony in Karachi, distributed solar home systems as part of the strategy to provide sustainable relief to low-income electricity consumers.
It is encouraging that despite criticism of the scheme by some quarters, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz is persisting with her pledges to provide substantial relief to the consumers by way of subsidizing bills up to Rs. 14 a unit. This ‘huge relief’, as she calls it, has already reached over two million consumers in the province and the goodwill gesture to extend the relief to consumers falling in Islamabad Capital Territory has widely been acclaimed as it would benefit over one hundred and fifty thousand consumers in the capital. The Chief Minister is also mindful of the fact that it was a temporary relief as she emphasized that relief in electricity bills is an urgent measure while a solar panel project is being launched for sustainable relief.
The Sindh Government also deserves credit for moving swiftly towards fulfilment of the pledges made by the PPP leadership during general election vis-à-vis provision of free electricity. Mr. Bilawal said he has directed Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah to contact Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on relief in electricity bills for people of the entire country. He also directed the Sindh CM to study the Punjab government’s relief programme to ensure power supply to people at reduced rates. We hope that apart from the targeted measures to alleviate sufferings of the electricity consumers, the Federal Government will also move quickly to offer a satisfactory solution to the issue of inflated electricity bills including utilization of Thar coal and focus on alternative resources of energy besides resolution of the issue of capacity payments.
