Increase in power tariff: MCCI urges government to withdraw decision

Multan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (MCCI) has criticised increase in electricity and gas tariff and urged the government to withdraw decision otherwise it would be last straw that breaks the camel's back. President MCCI, Shahid Naseem Khokhar said NEPRA was playing anti-business and anti-people role by allowing power distribution companies to raise tariffs without keeping in view the ground realities, economic crisis and troubles being faced by the industrial sector.
He said electricity tariff in Pakistan was already very high and posing massive challenges for the industrial sector. He said with the increase of Rs 1.7 per unit in the electricity tariff, industrial production cost would further rise and export oriented industries would face more difficulties to compete in international market with competitors like China, India and Bangladesh who care about their industries.
He said present regime has not only utterly failed in solving the problems of business community but has multiplied the issues. He said request of distribution companies for hike in electricity tariff and NEPRA hearing were pre-planned and an attempt to hoodwink the nation. He said country was facing a huge energy deficit for the last few years.
The president MCCI said that hours-long loadshedding had crippled the industrial activities, thousands of industrial units have closed down or relocated while millions of industrial workers have lost their jobs but despite initiating any mega power project to generate cheap electricity, government was playing the role of silent spectator and allowed blood-sucking NEPRA to play havoc with the trade and industry. Hike in electricity tariff would badly affect the agriculture sector of Pakistan, which was the backbone of our economy and feeding more than 70 percent of the population.