PESHAWAR, Jan 18: The Peshawar Electric Supply Company (Pesco) has extended by six months the period of its relief package for domestic and industrial consumers who have been without supply of power for the last five years.

A decision to this effect was taken during a high-level meeting presided over by Pesco chief executive Brig Tahir Saeed Malik and attended by the company's senior officers.

Originally, the relief package, which was announced by federal water and power minister Liaqat Jatoi on Sept 30 last, was meant for only one month. However, the package failed to attract positive response from the defaulters within the given period, making the company extend it up to June 30, 2005.

According to a press release issued here on Tuesday, all such defaulters whose power connections are disconnected because of non-payment of Wapda dues for the last five years have been asked to get their connections restored by depositing 50 per cent of the defaulted amount and paying the remaining amount in easy instalments.

The meeting observed that the defaulters should take benefit of the package to get their domestic and industrial connections restored. It also decided to cut off power supply to all those consumers belonging to the public sector who were not paying their dues in time and not clearing their arrears.

On the occasion, the Pesco chief directed the concerned authorities to disconnect power connections after Eid-ul-Azha of all those public sector departments who were not paying heed to Pesco's reminders to them for the payment of power dues.

He also took notice of the company's Swat circle for sending inflated bills to some of the public sector departments and directed the relevant authorities to submit a report to him on the matter after conducting a probe into the matter.