Wrong power tariff: investigation against Nepra officials demanded

The Pakistan Industrial and Traders Association Front (PIAF) has urged the Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani to launch an independent investigation against the officials of Nepra responsible for fooling the people by making wrong power tariff that caused heavy burden on the industrial and domestic users of electricity.
The PIAF Chairman Sohail Lashari, in a statement on Wednesday said that some officials in Nepra and other government departments were busy in making anti-social policies, therefore those elements should be brought to the justice and punished who had given financial and mental torture to the masses. He said that politician were busy in playing blame-game instead of focusing their attention towards the betterment of the masses.
He said that electricity and gas load shedding have already paralysed the industrial sector. Industrialists are unable to fulfil their export orders and their foreign buyers are making way to the other countries. Thousands industrial units have closed down their operations leaving millions workers unemployed but instead of taking some relief measures, Nepra and other government departments are creating more hurdles.
Lashari said that industrial power tariff is 9 cent per unit and 9.5 cent per unit in India and Bangladesh, respectively while Pakistani industrial users purchasing electricity on the higher price of 13 cent per unit. He said that mark-up rates were also too high when are compared with any of the developed economies, he added. He said that mark-up rate in US is 0.25 per cent, in UK 1.5 per cent, in Canada 1.5 per cent, in Australia 4.25 per cent, in Japan 0.1 per cent, in China 5.58 per cent, in India 5.5 per cent and in Bangladesh 7.61 per cent.
He said that though trade and industry was facing the multiple crisis but OGRA also was not ready to show sympathy and planning to raise the petroleum prices from Rs 10 to 13. He said that due to this a large number of industrial units had been shifted to the Bangladesh, while many others were planning to fly. He urged the Prime Minister to take notice of the scenario immediately and take relief measures otherwise situation would be out of hands. He also demanded strict action against the responsible elements for causing loss of billion rupees to the electricity users.