KARACHI:
Even though Peshawar Electric Supply Company (PESCO) is a public utility company, it seems to be artificially increasing its year-end earnings and causing immense hardships for consumers. The billing system is complicated as it is and now PESCO appears to have added additional units to consumer bills for December. In addition, the bills are often delivered late.
When consumers approach PESCO customer services with queries, the representatives are unable to help them and advise customers to pay the bill before the deadline to avoid additional charges and fines. PESCO added Rs10,152 additional unit costs to my bill for December. Their customer service representative failed to point this out to me, and I had to figure it out on my own. I would urge all PESCO consumers to check their electricity bill’s meter reading section to see if the meter reading is given in one line or two lines. For those having two lines of reading, the second line of units consumed is the illegal addition and should be highlighted to PESCO officials for correction.
PESCO and NEPRA must investigate who is responsible for these discrepancies in consumer bills and take strict action. NEPRA should ensure that there are no illegal increases in consumer bills of any distribution companies (DISCOs) in Pakistan.
Shahryar Khan
Peshawar
Published in The Express Tribune, January 22nd, 2023.
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