April 8, 2003	Tuesday	Safar 5, 1424

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ISLAMABAD, April 7: Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali on Monday constituted a two-member ministerial committee to look into the financial affairs of Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) and submit a financial improvement plan (FIP) to turn around the utility.

The committee, comprising Adviser to Prime Minister on Finance Shaukat Aziz and Minister for Water and Power Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao, would hold meetings with Wapda Chairman Zulfiqar Ali Khan to review utility’s performance and finalize an FIP that would later be submitted to the donor agencies.

Sources told Dawn that Wapda was also directed to come up with more irrigation and water projects for implementation during the next year to overcome water shortages.

Sources in the ministry for water and power said that an explanation had been sought from the Wapda chairman as to why he bypassed the ministry to directly seek an opportunity from the prime minister for briefing on Wapda issues.

They said that the power ministry was told just a day earlier by Wapda that a briefing was being given to the prime minister and the ministry should also join if it so wished.

The sources said that Mr Sherpao annoyed that the utility should not have directly approached the higher forum in the first place and secondly the ministry should have been informed well in advance.

The prime minister directed the Wapda management to provide more efficient service to consumers, cut its losses and run it more professionally, an official statement said.

The meeting was also attended by the water and power minister, finance adviser and Minister of State for Water and Power Khalid Ahmad Khan Lund.

Mr Jamali said that being the premier organization responsible for generation and distribution of power, Wapda had a major role in accelerating efforts aimed at socio-economic development in the country.

He said the Wapda’s network of power generation and distribution should be managed efficiently and skillfully so as to provide power for the domestic and industrial consumers at reasonable rates.

The prime minister asked the water authority’s high-ups to be more responsive in redressing the grievances of the people. “The organization should strive for greater consumer satisfaction instead of merely increasing the rates,” he added.

Mr Jamali said that the government’s efforts would be directed at rationalizing the cost of electricity and gas, which constitute the main source of energy for the industry.

The prime minister appreciated the “vision 2025” outlined for the organization and approved an amount of Rs1 billion for Wapda, to be provided in two phases for complete electrification of partially-electrified 1,784 villages.

The Wapda chairman told the meeting that the vision 2025 programme envisaged 2,300 MW of hydel power at the cost of $2.3 billion within the next seven to eight years.

He also gave a brief resume of the ongoing projects of the organization amounting to Rs150 billion being implemented at present.

Those included Gomal Zam Dam, raising of Mangla Dam Project, Kacchi Canal, Greater Thal Canal, Mirani Dam, Sabakzai Dam, Satpara Dam and Rainni Canal.

The chairman said that with the completion of those projects the country would be able to achieve accumulation of water up to a level of 5.8 MAF, besides irrigation of 3.2 million acres of land.