Capital dwellers: Drive against defaulters reaches power corridors

Electricity supply to 100 govt buildings, including President House, PM Secretariat, CJP residence disconnected

ISLAMABAD: A day after gas supply was discontinued to several government institutions, the Islamabad Electric Supply Company (IESCO) also tightened the noose around defaulters by cutting off supplies to the President House, Prime Minister’s Secretariat and several other buildings of top institutions over unpaid bills amounting to millions of rupees.

IESCO had served notices to various public and private departments over the non-payment of dues amounting to Rs3 billion. However, due to non-payment, the power utility on Monday began to cut off supply to 100 top government buildings, including the President House, Prime Minister’s Secretariat, Parliament Lodges, official residence of chief justice of Pakistan, and Sindh and Balochistan House.

The step was taken on the directives of Minister of State for Water and Power Abid Sher Ali who told a news conference on Tuesday that his ministry has  launched a crackdown against  defaulters on the orders of  Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

The minister also issued  orders to disconnect electricity supply to the head offices  of the National Database  and Registration Authority  (Nadra), Capital Development  Authority (CDA), Frontier  Works Organisation (FWO),  Environmental Directorate,  Punjab Jail, Motorway  Police, Pakistan Public Works  Department, and the office of  TMO Rawalpindi.

According to a breakdown of  dues owed by different institutions, the Prime Minister’s  Secretariat is to pay Rs6.2 million, residence of the Chief  Justice of Pakistan, Rs1.1 million; CDA, Rs360 million, and  Rs200 million is outstanding  against the Parliament Lodges.

Sher Ali said that in the public sector, the Sindh government has defaulted on a power bill amounting to Rs56  billion, while 5,000 connections have been disconnected  which the provincial administration refused to own. He said electricity theft amounting to Rs70billion has been reported in Balochistan where 16,000 illegal tube-wells are operating.  Similarly, Azad Kashmir owes Rs33 billion in power dues.

Sher Ali said that power supply to all institutions as well as individual consumers who had not paid their bills would be cut off. “The water and power ministry will not allow anyone to steal electricity,” he added.

The minister said that he had told the prime minister that if markets were closed around  8pm, then 1,000 megawatts  of electricity could be saved.

The spokesman of IESCO confirmed that the company has disconnected power supply to the Prime Minister’s Secretariat, President House and several other institutions which the state minister had  given immediate orders for.  He maintained that defaulters were depositing cheques to clear dues and that power supply would be restored after bills and dues were paid.

Meanwhile, regarding the electricity disconnection of the  SC building by IESCO, the PWD  on behalf of the Supreme Court  said in a statement that all the  electricity dues of SC building,  Chief Justice House and all  judges residences have been  paid to IESCO up to April 2014.