There was no let-up in lengthy bouts of load shedding and scorching heat across most of the country, which served to deepen the people’s resentment of the government, as a top Planning Commission official said the government had decided to clear a major portion of the outstanding circular debt next week to help enhance power generation and bring down the overall energy shortfall. “The government will pay a considerable portion of the circular debts, which amounts to Rs 210 billion, to overcome the ongoing crisis,” Planning Commission member Shahid Sattar told APP here. He attributed the current energy shortfall to the delay in the oil shipment of PSO and severity of the circular debt issue.
He also said there was a need to bring down loss of electricity and overcoming leakages was as imperative as generation of electricity to ensure a smooth and continuous supply. Sattar said the new strategy envisaged greatly enhanced private sector investment in the energy sector. Meanwhile, the duration of power outages went up to 6 to 8 hours a day in Quetta, 10 hours in district headquarters, and 12 to 14 hours in rural areas. The escalating load shedding and scorching heat across the province has greatly disturbed the people, a situation exacerbated by shortage of water.
