Tareen Says Electricity Tariffs to not be Further Increased

Shaukat Tareen, the Federal Minister for Finance, announced on Sunday that tariffs on power will not be raised in the future. He added that this is being done to ensure that those paying taxes already do no have to be burdened with additional ones. 

While the Minister was addressing a budget seminar being held in Islamabad, he said that the main priority of the government is to ensure that the country is able to meet its targets for stable progress. He revealed that for this decision, the relevant authorities of the government met up with economic experts, who are well aware of the economic environment in Pakistan. 

Tareen asserted that it is necessary, especially at the moment, to increase the number of exports, if the economy is to be improved. 

He added that the government is striving to advance and improve the energy sector. According to Tareen, the power tariff will see no increase in the future. He went on to recall how the economy had been facing a severe crisis when the current government came into power. The Minister went on to praise the decisions taken by the Prime Minister of the country to prioritize measures, which would bring about an increase in the value of the local currency. 

As per Tareen, the government faced numerous difficulties while trying to economically revive the country. Despite the novel coronavirus pandemic, he claimed that the construction sector had been uplifted, as well as 40 associated industries had been revived. 

Furthermore, the Federal Finance Minister said that the government had successfully brought about an increase in the revenue, by collecting a record Rs. 4 trillion in this year. He revealed that the relevant authorities are trying to ensure that there is a substantial reduction in circular debt. For this, additional measures for the agricultural sector will be announced, along with farmer-friendly policies. These will ensure the development of the sector. 

Concluding his speech, Tareen added that additional taxes will not be imposed on the people who are already paying taxes. Rather, imprison the people who are committing and are involved in theft of revenue collection. These people will be discovered through the use of power bills and modern technology. 

On the 19th of May, it was discovered that the government has made a decision to form new categories of tariffs of electricity for all consumers. This will be done to ensure that there is a reduction in the volume of the subsidy. If true, this decision will most likely be implemented from the 1st of June 2021. 

Sources reported that the relevant authorities of the government have not yet created a timeline to implement this decision. However, it has granted authorization to the Minister for Finance to come up with one. 

Soon after it is implemented, no less than eight million consumers will no longer be in the subsidy net in its initial phase. As of now, around 22 million people, who consume electricity, receive the subsidy.