Streetlight meters: Punjab seeks functionality verification survey

ISLAMABAD: The government of Punjab has requested a comprehensive survey to verify the functionality of existing streetlight meters and to ensure the installation of separate energy meters for all unmetered streetlight connections maintained by local governments. The province has also called for a special electricity tariff for streetlights, citing inflated billing practices by distribution companies (Discos).

According to the Secretary for Local Governments, Punjab, there are currently 229 Local Governments providing municipal services across the province. Under Section 21(1)(s)(iii) of the Punjab Local Government Act, 2022, the responsibility for the installation and maintenance of street lighting lies with these Local Governments.

Despite facing limited financial resources, Local Governments have been striving to maintain street lighting infrastructure. However, the rising cost of electricity—exacerbated by inflated bills—has made it increasingly difficult to sustain these essential services. A major contributing factor to these high bills is the prevalence of unmetered streetlight connections.

Currently, Punjab has a total of 177,495 streetlights, of which 99,288 are metered while 78,207 remain unmetered. Due to the lack of proper metering, Discos often bill Local Governments based on average consumption or lump-sum estimates. This results in payments for electricity that is not actually consumed, placing a heavy financial burden on already stretched municipal budgets.

Audit reports from the Municipal Corporations of Rawalpindi and Sialkot, presented before the Public Accounts Committee-III (PAC-III) of the Punjab Assembly, flagged significant overpayments. The audit cited unjustified payments of Rs. 69.048 million in Rawalpindi and Rs. 70.667 million in Sialkot for streetlight electricity bills.

After reviewing the audit findings and the responses of the concerned departments, PAC-III issued the following directive to the Local Government and Community Development Department:

“The Committee directed the Administrative Department to prepare a comprehensive reference for submission to the Federal Government, emphasizing the rationalization of electricity tariffs, installation of separate meters, and exploration of alternate solutions.”

In a letter addressed to the Secretary of the Power Division, the Secretary for Local Governments, Punjab, requested that in light of the PAC directions, necessary instructions be issued to all relevant Discos in Punjab to: (i) conduct a comprehensive survey to verify the functionality of all already-installed streetlight meters and ;(ii) expedite the installation of separate energy meters for all unmetered streetlight connections maintained by Local Governments.

The letter also urges to take up the matter with the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) to introduce a special electricity tariff for streetlights, given that these services constitute a vital public utility.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025