NA body concerned over unannounced power outages

ISLAMABAD: The National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Water and Power on Wednesday expressed serious concern over the unscheduled and hours-long power outages in the country, especially in Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa provinces, and also pinpointed that outdated transmission lines and infrastructure as the main source of irritation for power consumers.

The committee that met here with MNA Muhammad Arshad Khan Leghari in the chair directed the Ministry of Water and Power to make all-out efforts to maximise the power generation and properly manage the load to overcome the loadshedding in the upcoming summer season.

The members of the committee raised the issues of unscheduled loadshedding and outdated infrastructure throughout the country especially in their respective constituencies. In order to resolve the issues, the committee formed a sub-committee to be headed by Nawab Muhammad Yousuf Talpur, MNA to look into the issues of electricity in the DISCOs of Sindh and water related issues with Irsa, Sindh and to submit its recommendations to the main committee. The committee also adopted the report of the sub-committee formed to resolve the electricity related problems in Pesco.

Earlier, Yousuf Naseem Khokhar, Secretary, Ministry of Water and Power, briefly apprised the committee about the different power generation projects which was initiated to overcome its shortfall. He said that the there was no plan to decrease the powers of Nepra, instead its power to conduct enquiry was being increased. He said that they had started performance-based audit of the Discos.

Ministry of Water and Power secretary informed that the loadshedding was caused by power shortage and they were trying their best to control the unscheduled loadshedding. He said that they were trying to provide relief to the consumers in Ramazan.