Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has issued a directive to end unannounced loadshedding across the country and to reduce power outages on loss-making feeders.
This announcement came during a high-level meeting held in Islamabad to address the issues of electricity theft, demand, supply and loadshedding.
During the meeting, which Prime Minister Sharif chaired, the Ministry of Energy provided a comprehensive briefing, including about the meeting between Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur and the energy minister.
Sources reveal that the prime minister emphasized the importance of eliminating unannounced loadshedding, which has been causing significant inconvenience to the public, especially amid the intense summer heat. He also ordered that the duration of loadshedding on loss-making feeders should also be reduced.
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"People are facing problems due to the intensity of the heat," Prime Minister Sharif stated, underscoring the urgent need for reliable electricity supply.
The Energy Ministry reported that current loadshedding was primarily occurring on feeders experiencing high losses. The KP chief minister assured the meeting of efforts to curb electricity theft in the province.
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Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif acknowledged the progress reported by the KP CM and emphasized that preventing electricity theft is a collective responsibility of all relevant institutions. He directed that maximum relief be provided to the public during the hot weather, indicating a strong governmental commitment to addressing the energy crisis and improving the quality of life for citizens.
He ordered improvement of the load management situation in this extreme heat, stressing that those who stole electricity would be dealt with strictly.
“The mission against electricity theft will be brought to its logical conclusion and electricity theft completely eradicated,” said the PM, adding that he would personally review the progress on prevention of electricity theft on a monthly basis.
The provincial governments and law enforcement agencies should fully support the anti-electricity theft campaign, Shehbaz stressed, adding that all government institutions should perform their responsibilities properly in this regard.
“There should be absolutely no over-billing of electricity,” he instructed and ordered obtaining the services of experts regarding expediting the process of privatization of power distribution companies.
Meanwhile, people are facing hardships due to the extreme heatwave across the country. According to details, in Jhang, like other parts, the threat of an extreme heatwave is looming, due to which a large number of people are falling sick.
Medical experts urged the citizens to follow the precautionary measures to avert the heatwave.