20 January 2004	Tuesday	27 Ziqa'ad 1424

LAHORE, Jan 19: Wapda Chairman Tariq Hamid who has 'no idea' about the use of substandard steel in the Ghazi Barotha Hydropower Project says the power channel has been closed for 'six monthly check-up' rather than any fault in it.

Speaking at a press conference here on Monday, the chairman said he was not aware of the status of inquiry nor about the use of substandard steel in the GBHP.

Talking about the Wapda promotion policy, he said that authority would persist with its present policy of taking test for every promotion. Though the federal government has instructed otherwise, the authority can make its own rules.

Speaking on the tendering procedures of Wapda which had caused controversies during the last many years, he said that there was nothing wrong with it. Wapda was purchasing costly electricity metres because it had to save local industry. People can take the burden of extra payment for saving the local industry.

About his priorities to run Wapda, he said that he wanted to control expenditure and improve human resources. The authority had also been concentrating on improving customer service so that people could get relief. .

In addition to it, he pledged to focus his attention on missing links. "If a few kilometres of transmission line at some point could improve flow of distribution, Wapda will do it on priority basis. Similarly, industrial connections get priority and so do tubewells."