MY electricity bill (Consumer No 1141540999) for the month of August amounted to Rs35,397. Worried that a late payment would inflate it further with an additional Rs2,979, I rushed to the Islamabad Electric Supply Company (Iesco) main office on the Murree Road to request for an extension in the last date so that I may arrange the money. Unlike the other utility bills that facilitate the consumers to deposit them in the beginning of the month, the Iesco deadline is often the last day of the month.
I exercised a tight control over electricity consumption in September and succeeded in bringing down the number of consumed units from 1,548 in August to 1,461 in September, expecting a relief in the total amount. However, the bill for September again stood at Rs35,397, adding Rs1,918 in the box nominated as ‘Total fuel adjustment’.
I do not know the propriety behind this increment, and probably will never ever know. In the absence of local governments, very few people could muster the courage and the energy to collect this desired information from government departments. I hope someone from Iesco would like to clarify the matter.
Muhammad Saleem
Rawalpindi
MEDICAL TREATMENT: Umer Sharif was undoubtedly a popular star who will be missed. It was good that he got the medical care that came his way, but are such facilities and attention available only to a selected few? I know for sure patients with similar ailments are languishing in different hospitals in Pakistan. Is there any system whereby they can also receive the same attention and medical treatment? To me all lives are as important as that of Umer Sharif regardless of their financial background and popularity.
Cdre (retd) Sajjad Ali Shah Bokhari
Islamabad
I.E.L.T.S. VALIDITY: This is with reference to the letter ‘Clash between Covid and IELTS validity’ (Sept 30). I fully endorse the request made therein. A number of students are facing this pressure. The relevant bodies need to offer one-year extension in the validity of IELTS tests.
Gohar Alam
Wah Cantt
WELL DONE, N.A.D.R.A: My spouse had lost her CNIC while travelling from Karachi to Islamabad. We visited the National Database Registration Authority (Nadra) Mega Centre in North Nazimabad to apply for a duplicate copy. There was a long queue ahead of us, but when we informed the gatekeeper that we were senior citizens, he allowed us to enter immediately. Inside, there was a separate arrangement for senior citizens and we left the centre within minutes. The experience was unbelievably pleasant.
M. Vaqaruddin
Karachi
CHANGING CENTRE: A testing service had announced the examination for the Nishat scholarship for students of schools, colleges and universities. I chose Karachi as my testing centre for various reasons, including proximity. Just days before the exam, the testing service changed the centre of many Balochistan-based students from Karachi to Khairpur Mirs in the interior of Sindh. I request the relevant authorities to revert the test centre from Khairpur Mirs to Karachi to facilitate the students from Balochistan.
Fida Basheer
Khuzdar
Published in Dawn, October 9th, 2021
