PM Nawaz announces Rs2.19 cut in power rates

Chairs meeting of heads of commerce chambers, exports at the PM House

ISLAMABAD:

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif announced on Friday a Rs2.19 per unit cut in the rate of electricity across the country.

“The government will continue to pass on the benefits to the consumers on efficiencies and lower oil prices,” he said in a meeting held at the Prime Minister’s Office, according to an official statement.

The premier added that the reduction in prices would be reflected in the electricity bills of non-subsidy consumers in the coming months. He also announced a Rs2.14 cut in prices for the months of June and July 2015.

Chairing a high-level meeting of the heads of chambers of commerce and industries and exporters at the Prime Minister’s Office, Nawaz said his government had taken major decisions to improve the power sector, in particular. He said the government was working rapidly to meet the shortage of electricity and gas in the country, and asked industrialists to plan on setting up new industrial units accordingly.

Accorrding to the premier, work was already under way to import natural gas from Turkmenistan through the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India pipeline project. He said he has been invited for the ground-breaking of the project in December and that the pipeline would be completed in the next four years.

Prime Minister Nawaz said the hallmark of his government has been the fact that all important decisions were taken “at the national level, with consensus.”

“The decision to launch Operation Zarb-e-Azb [to eliminate militancy] had the full support of the nation,” he said. “[Similarly] all political parties took the unanimous decision to rid Karachi of target killers, extortionists and organisations involved in spreading hate,” the premier added.



Recalling his earlier meetings with the businessmen of the country, Nawaz said all of them had appreciated the improvement in law and order which had restored the confidence of investors and the international community in Pakistan.

The prime minister said that with launch of the National Action Plan against terrorism, speedy military courts were established by a democratic government, reflecting the ruling party’s boldness to rid the country of extremists and terrorists.

He lauded the sacrifices of the people and security forces of Pakistan, and said no concession would be given to those who targeted the military personnel. “The nation needs to stand united to make Pakistan crime free and overcome other challenges,” he said, adding that the government would also improve the judicial system in coordination with the judiciary.

On the economic front, Premier Nawaz stressed the promotion of ‘tax culture’ to build up the country’s wealth. He said his government was against receiving aid from other countries and a strong tax culture could help Pakistan move away from that.

“If you want to see Pakistan prosperous and self-reliant, give tax and strengthen the state,” he said. “The nation must try to learn from mistakes of the past and take Pakistan forward on a path of progress and development.”

Terming exports essential for the country’s prosperity, Nawaz said a strategy to boost them would be worked out soon in light of recommendations from businessmen and exporters. He regretted that Pakistan did not make any substantial progress in exports during the last several years and lagged behind other countries in the region in this regard. The premier added that despite insufficient resources, the government was determined to resolving the problems of businessmen and farmers.

The chairman of the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry Mian Muhammad Adrees, assured Prime Minister Nawaz of full cooperation from industrial and trade houses of the country and acknowledged the business friendly policies of the government. He presented a set of proposals before the meeting to build a business-friendly atmosphere between the government and private sector.


Published in The Express Tribune, September 12^th, 2015.