Islamabad:
`Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday officially launched” Apna Meter, Apna Reading “Smart Mobile Application, a new initiative designed to improve the transparency of electricity invoicing. The app allows consumers to register their own meter readings and submit them directly to their respective power distribution companies.
“We implemented reforms in the electricity sector, but we have a long way to go. We brought credit -based agreements to the discos and took strong action against the corrupt mafia,” he said.
The premiere made these comments at a ceremony to start the “Apna meter app, Apna Reading”.
The initiative gradually seeks to eliminate the role of the meter reader in Power Distribution Companies (Discos) nationwide and addresses widespread dissatisfaction among consumers. During the current Pro Rata system, many consumers are moved out of the ‘protected category’ or moved into higher billing plates, resulting in increased electricity fees.
The Prime Minister maintained that the initiative is a revolutionary step the government is taking, as part of the electricity sector reforms in the past year.
He noted that the Minister of Energy made a strict effort and kept tough negotiations with independent power producers (IPP), which eventually led to reduction in electricity prices with RS7.5 per year. Unit.
“We settled circular debt after negotiations with banks. As global oil prices fell, we exploited and reduced electricity prices,” he said, adding that despite the concerns, the government made the hard decision to restore prices and not transfer the burden to consumers.
The premiere announced that the fee for Pakistan -tv (PTV) will be abolished from electricity bills. Consumers are currently charged RS35 monthly PTV fees through electricity bills.
He noticed that the biggest challenge is power theft worth the RS500 billion. Annually, and efforts are made to limit the threat.
He emphasized that the government will not deter solar energy as it is the cheapest form of electricity. “Pakistan is one of the countries with the greatest growth in solar energy production,” he said.
The Prime Minister observed that the largest recipient of this app will be the power consumers. “It’s a revolutionary technology, it will benefit any consumer in every home,” adds that the power department must raise awareness among consumers to use the app, which has been introduced in five languages.
Federal Energy Minister Awais Ahmed Leghari also spoke to the occasion and said the initiative is aiming to give the meter reader’s responsibility to consumers.
He pointed out that power consumers under the ‘protected category’ who consumed less than 100 units were given higher bills due to delayed or deficient meter reading. He said the government returned RS10 billion. In the over -up amount last year and that efforts are made to ensure transparency in the billing process.
In a statement earlier, Power Division said the new feature allows electricity consumers to take a picture of their electricity meter on a specified date and upload it to the app based on which their monthly bill will be issued.
The purpose of this system is to provide an effective solution to long -term problems such as overbilling, reading errors and delay in reading.
“This is not only a technology function, but a concrete reform in governance that really allows consumers. With this system, consumers will not only be able to keep track of their bills, but now they will also be the guardians of the reading process,” it added.
If the user gives the reading on the due date, the meter reading will be taken after that day will not prioritize and only the reading of the user will be fed.
