Protest on streets against hike in power bills: Lahore High Court,
Nepra rejects Rs2.07 per unit increase in electricity tariff,
ISLAMABAD – Caretaker Finance Minister Shamshad Akhtar on Wednesday presented proposals to the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in an effort to ease the burden of high electricity bills.
Ministry of Finance sources revealed that there was a virtual exchange between Pakistan and IMF officials, during which Akhtar communicated with IMF representative Esther Perez to discuss potential relief measures for electricity bills. The finance minister told the IMF the current situation stemming from the rise in electricity bills and put forth various suggestions for providing relief. Following the briefing, the IMF demanded a written plan from Pakistani authorities outlining the proposed measures. Ministry sources hint that Pakistan is expected to submit the plan to the IMF later today. Moreover, the tax collections in July were extensively discussed during the IMF’s deliberations, and it is expected that further dialogue will be held between FBR officials and the IMF in the coming days.
While,
The Lahore High Court on Wednesday asked the petitioner challenging the increased taxes on electricity bills, to protest on the streets against the government’s decision to impose multiple taxes on the bill.
LHC’s Justice Shams Mehmood Mirza during the hearing on a plea filed by Shaikh Muhammad Latif to slash multiple taxes imposed on the power consumers’ bills. He said that the petitioners will need to explain why the taxes are illegal instead of discussing articles of the Constitution.
Addressing the petitioner’s lawyer Ahmed Abdullah Dogar, Justice Shams said that they should protest on the roads if they are not challenging the laws related to electricity. During the hearing, Justice Shams remarked that protests are a civilised way of convincing governments around the world. He inquired from the petitioner’s lawyer why he did not challenge the laws relating to the power sector. The court can declare a law void if it is against basic human rights, he said.
The petitioner’s lawyer had pleaded before the court to declare void the collection of taxes in the bills. He said that several taxes are collected in the bills which hike the price of per unit. He informed the court that the authorities are collecting the general sales tax twice in a single bill along with FC Surcharge, TV fee, and electricity duty among others. The lawyer said that the upper courts had given a verdict on the collection of multiple taxes and declared it illegal.
Earlier,
The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) on Wednesday refused to approve Rs2.07 per unit increase in electricity tariff in terms of July’s fuel charge adjustment (FCA), People across Pakistan are protesting against the inflated electricity bills to put pressure on the government for relief. The power companies sought the Central Power Purchasing Agency (CPPA) to hike the electricity tariff by Rs2.07 per unit for July fuel charge adjustment (FCA). In this regard, the Nepra heard the plea that stated that the ratio of power generation from thermal resources was 37.18%, 14.68% from coal, 1.98% from furnace oil, and 1967% from Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) in July.
The rate of local power production was 7.61%, 14.29% from nuclear fuel for generating 14.388 billion units of electricity. The production cost was recorded at Rs8.96 per unit, whereas, the reference cost was fixed at Rs6.89 per unit. However, the Nepra authority remained upset over the request for an increase in electricity prices. The authority was not satisfied with the data presented by the CPPA. The Nepra Chairman directed the CPPA officials to get the statistics correct. He held that the burden of incorrect data will not be put on electricity consumers.” Why was the investment plan approved by Nepra not implemented?” Chairman Nepra questioned. He further added that the Nepra authority will look into the technical issues separately.
The chairman vowed that he would not let the debris of technical problems fall on the people. The hearing on the request to increase the price of electricity in Nepra has been completed
Earlier in the month, the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) launched an investigation into the issue of over-billing on faulty and slow-speed electricity meters.
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