The Punjab government has discontinued the Rs. 14 per unit relief for consumers in the Islamabad Capital Territory.
According to a letter, the Islamabad Electric Supply Company (IESCO) communicated to the GM IESCO Islamabad that, as per telephonic discussions, instructions regarding the discontinuation of the CM Punjab relief of Rs. 14 per unit for domestic single-phase consumers with a consumption range of 201 to 500 units are being implemented for ICT consumers for the billing month of September 2024.
Consumers in Islamabad city and the surrounding areas will now receive their electricity bills reflecting the new increased prices, which the federal government implemented effective July 1 to comply with IMF conditions. The federal government raised electricity prices by up to 51% to meet IMF requirements, but it has still not secured loan approval.
In this context, necessary instructions are being issued to the PITC to make changes in the billing software so that the instructions received from the Secretary of Energy, Punjab, may be implemented in true letter and spirit, and the CM Punjab relief may be discontinued in the ICT area in the billing of September 2024.
n August and September, the Punjab government approved a Rs14 per unit subsidy for electricity bills for consumers in the province and Islamabad using between 201 and 500 units. The provincial finance minister reportedly stated that the actual cost of the subsidy was Rs. 90 billion, but the Punjab chief minister indicated it would be Rs. 45 billion.
Discontinuing the electricity subsidy for consumers in the Islamabad Capital Territory is expected to save a few billion rupees. The two-month relief for Punjab consumers is now estimated to cost the provincial government around Rs60 billion.
Following the Punjab government’s unexpected subsidy package, the IMF introduced a new condition requiring all provincial governments to refrain from implementing any policy or action that could undermine or contradict the commitments made under the $7 billion program.
It is pertinent to note that the Punjab government had announced two months of electricity relief worth Rs. 45 billion for consumers in Punjab and ICT.
