The Water and Power Ministry has added two surcharges — the Financial Cost Surcharge (FCS) and Tariff Rationalisation Surcharge (TRS) — on electricity bills for the month of July despite a court order against slapping the new surcharge.
Last week, the Lahore High Court had set aside the levying of equalisation surcharge and debt servicing surcharge but the government convened a meeting of the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) and imposed the two new surcharge, thus sending inflated bills to consumers.
The Islamabad Electricity Supply Company has sent 15 to 20 per cent higher bill to consumers for the month of July. A source in the Ministry of Water and Power said that the cost of per unit has been raised from Rs 2.53 to Rs 3 following the addition of the two surcharges and its burden has been shifted on the lifeline consumers.
A spokesman for the water ministry claimed that the cost of per unit electricity in peak hours has been reduced from Rs 18.3 to Rs 15. “These surcharges have not been slapped on consumers using units ranging between 200 and 300 per month,” he said.