Chairman Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA), Tariq Hameed has said that strenuous efforts were being made to provide improved electricity services to the industrial and domestic consumers on top priority basis. Addressing at Sialkot Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) on Thursday, he said that special attention was focused on remodelling of electricity distribution system while work on standardised distribution bad been initiated to minimise incidents caused by circuit breakdowns, short circuiting, naked electricity wires and web of rotten wires.
Tariq Hammed was of the opinion that IPPs would reduce tariff in next year. At present there were about 5.2 million consumers consuming 300 units of electricity monthly throughout the country and WAPDA was paying subsidy amounting to Rs 22 billion annually due to which it was suffering financially, he disclosed. He said that in order to further accelerate the pace of industrial activities, electricity connections were being provided to industrial units on top priority basis enabling them to work in a pressure free environment.
There were over 34000 villages in all four provinces having no electricity and out of this total 14000 villages were located in Balochistan alone. On the pressing demand of SCCI to waive charges for laying service line for under-construction Sialkot International Airport, he announced a time relaxation for the management of the airport asking them to make payment of Wapda service charges of Rs 10 million in easy instalments till the airport became operational.
Provincial Industries Minister Mohammad Ajmal Cheema, Sialkot District Nazim Mian Naeem Javed, President SCCI Qaiser S Shabhir and others also spoke on the occasion.