Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has said that the natural gas produced in Sindh is being supplied to fertilizer and power sectors and the entire country benefits from power and fertilizer. Therefore, Sindh may be compensated for the amount of natural gas not provided to its consumers of different sectors, he said this while presiding over a meeting to discuss the proposed amendments suggested in OGRA Ordinance 2020 at the CM House here on Friday, said a statement.
The meeting was attended by Minister Energy Imtiaz Shaikh, Principal Secretary to CM Sajid Jamal Abro, Secretary Energy Musadiq Ahmed, Secretary Finance Najam Shah, MD TCEB Tariq Ali Shah and other concerned officers. The chief minister said that under Article 158 of the Constitution of Pakistan the province where well-head of natural gas was situated has first right of utilisation of indigenous natural gas.
But on the contrary natural gas produced from Sindh is supplied to other provinces and requirements of the province are not being met, he said and went on saying in addition, the natural gas produced in Sindh is also supplied to Fertilizer and Power sectors and entire country benefits from power and fertilizer.
He said, had the natural gas supplied to other industrial, commercial and domestic consumers in Sindh, the province could have benefited a lot. Thus, Sindh may be compensated for the amount of natural gas not provided to its consumers of different sectors, he said.
Syed Murad Ali Shah directed Minister Energy Imtiaz Shaikh to sit with his experts and prepare a case and sent it to the next meeting of the Council of Common Interest (CCI).
The Sindh government has proposed an amended in Section 3 (3) and the amendment read as, 'the Authority shall consist of a Chairman to be appointed by the Federal Government and four Members, one from each Provinces, to be appointed by the Federal Government in consultation with the concerned Provincial Government.'
The Sindh government has also proposed an amendment in Section 3(13) which reads as, 'There shall be a Vice-Chairman of the Authority, appointed from amongst the Members for a period of one year, by rotation include from the members representing Baluchistan, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab.'
On the matter of `Powers of the Federal Government to issue policy guidelines, the Sindh government has proposed that the Federal Government can issue policy guidelines to the Authority but with prior of approval of CCI.