September 09, 2008	Tuesday	Ramazan 8, 1429

ISLAMABAD, Sept 8: On a petition moved by the Frontier government, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Monday stayed the federal government from the proposed 31 per cent increase in power tariff in the province till it disposed of the petition.

In the meantime, IHC Chief Justice Sardar Mohammad Aslam ordered the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra), Peshawar Electric Supply Company Limited (Pesco) and the federal government to submit comments on the petition in two weeks.

“Respondents are restrained from passing any final order and directed to maintain status quo subject to notice for September 24,” the order said.

On Aug 23, Nepra had recommended an unprecedented increase of up to 76 per cent in electricity tariff for distribution companies of Wapda, including Pesco.

The increase was allowed on the plea of Pesco for increasing consumer-end electricity tariff and rates for security deposits, but Nepra granted the company greater relief than it had requested for by arbitrarily enhancing electricity tariff of different slabs to an amount much more than Pesco had asked for.

Assisted by Mian Gul Aurengzeb and Hameed Ahmed, Senior Advocate Hafeez Pirzada, representing the NWFP government, recalled that the Lahore High Court on a similar petition had also restrained Wapda from raising electricity tariff till September 2009.

Hafeez Pirzada argued before the court that the announcement of enhancing electricity tariff was illegal, unlawful, arbitrary and capricious, against the principles of natural justice, discriminatory, without lawful authority and of no legal effect.

Wapda and the National Transmission and Dispatch Company was receiving hydel generated electricity in the NWFP at the rate of Rs1.01 per KWh and were selling it back to the province six to nine times higher, the petition contended, pleading that the NWFP should not be subjected to an exorbitantly high electricity tariff.

The increase in the electricity tariff, the petition said, would adversely affect the law and order situation in the NWFP where the provincial government had already requisitioned about 25,000 troops for improvement of law and order.

Increased electricity tariff, the NWFP petition said, would also affect the “right to life” as guaranteed by Article 9 of the Constitution by affecting the quality of life of the citizens as a rise in electricity tariff would make healthcare, education and development activities more expensive.

The provincial government being a major consumer of electricity would also be adversely affected by an upward revision in the power tariff because it would pay higher rates on account of irrigation and water supply tubewells, streetlights, government buildings and offices.

Higher tariff rates of Pesco were attributed to higher line losses, theft of energy and poor performance of the company, the petition said, adding that shifting the impact of this inefficiency to the general public than to improve its efficiency was illogical, improper and unjustified.

Problems and shortcomings in the transmission system should be rectified by Pesco, Wapda and the federal government, it said, adding administrative losses of over 18 per cent represent the theft of electricity and, therefore, was the responsibility of Pesco.

Recently, the provincial assembly had demanded through two resolutions for immediate withdrawal of increase in agricultural tariff from March 2008.