Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif said on Monday that the previous rulers only generated profit for themselves, not electricity, during a meeting with National Assembly Speaker Ayaz Sadiq at his residence in Model Town.
“We will salvage the nation from load shedding and fulfill our promises to clear circular debt,” he said, adding that tough decisions would have to be made to resuscitate the economy as circular debt has increased to over Rs 500 billion. The chief minister (CM) maintained that the government would pay it within 60 days.
He stated that it was ironic that both the rich and poor benefited from the subsidy on electricity, whereas the rich had no right to it.
By exploring cheaper sources for generating electricity, the production cost could be lowered, said Shahbaz. He informed that the Punjab government would step up measures against power theft, and a special task force had been formed for this purpose.
He also spoke about the Nandipur Power Project, lamenting that it had been delayed for more than two years due to the previous rulers’ corrupt practices. Now, the project’s estimated cost has risen from 22 billion to 57 billion, he added.
The Punjab government is planning a five year energy policy and it would take all stakeholders into confidence on this matter, he concluded.