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Govt enforces monetisation policy, ceases complimentary electricity for officials

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  • Officers will receive monetary compensation instead.
  • CCoE decided regarding monetisation policy on Oct 26.
  • Grade 21 officers will receive Rs55,536/month.

ISLAMABAD: The federal government has decided to discontinue the provision of complimentary electricity units to officers of Grade 17 and above in power-related companies as of December 1, The News reported on Wednesday.

These officers will now only receive monetary compensation through their salaries instead.

The decision was made by the Cabinet Committee on Energy (CCoE) on October 26, 2023, and was subsequently approved by the federal cabinet. The Energy Ministry (Power Division) officially communicated the implementation of this resolution on Tuesday.

The move, titled “Monetisation of Free Electricity Units Admissible to Employees of WAPDA and XWAPDA Companies (DISCOs), power generation companies (GENCOs), National Transmission and Despatch Company (NTDC), and Power Information Technology Company (PITC),” mandates all in-service employees in Grade-17 and above to pay their electricity bills issued by the respective DISCOs. The reference numbers for these bills are already available with the DISCOs.

Details of the revised compensation for Grade 17 to Grade 21 officers in WAPDA, DISCOs, NTDC, and PITC indicate that Grade 17 officers, formerly receiving 450 free units monthly, will now receive Rs15,858 per month. Grade 18 officers, instead of the previous 600 free units, will now receive Rs21,996 per month.

Compensation for Grade 19 officers, in place of 880 free units, will be Rs37,594/month. Grade 20 officers will now receive Rs46,992/month instead of the earlier 1,100 free units, while Grade 21 officers will be compensated Rs55,536/month instead of the previous 1,300 free units monthly.

For officers attached to generation companies (GENCOs) and power generation stations, Grade-17 officers will receive Rs24,570 per month instead of 650 free units.

Grade 18 officers will be given Rs26,460/month instead of 700 free units, and Grade 19 officers will receive Rs42,720/month instead of the earlier 1,000 free units. Grade 20 officers will be compensated Rs46,992/month instead of the previous 1,100 units, and Grade 21 officers will receive Rs55,536/month instead of the earlier 1,300 free units.

The initial proposal did not include WAPDA employees, but after discussions held at a meeting in the Prime Minister’s Office on August 27, 2023, and attended by the chairman WAPDA, they have now been incorporated into the revised arrangement.

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An investigation was “launched” into PTA’s inability to get Rs. 78 billion back from Telcos

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The PTA has reportedly been instructed to reply to NAB by July 29. According to the enquiry, the national exchequer has suffered losses as a result of the delay in collecting dues.

The PTA has been asked to provide NAB with information about any pertinent records, court proceedings, and overdue bills. The NAB Karachi has summoned the PTA officials to appear with all pertinent documentation.

All of the principle sum has to be paid by the LDI firms, according to sources. But due to judicial stay orders, the collection of dues has been impeded.

These sources further state that a steering group has been established by the Ministry of IT to supervise the issue of dues recovery.

In a previous event, the tariffs levied on importing cell phones from outside were clarified by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).

Contrary to what some internet reports claim, PTA clarified in response to recent news regarding the tariffs on mobile phone imports that there hasn’t been a formal decision to remove these levies in Pakistan.

the PTA.Pakistanis living abroad will be the only ones free from these levies, according to the PTA. A SIM card can be inserted and the phone restarted to temporarily register a device for non-PTA mobile subscribers.

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Weekly inflation in Pakistan increased by 0.17 percent.

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The SPI for the week under review in the aforementioned group was reported at 321.95 points, as opposed to 321.40 points during the previous week, according to the PBS statistics.

The SPI for the combined consumption group saw a 20.09 percent increase in the week under review compared to the same week the previous year.

The weekly SPI includes 51 necessary items for every spending group and 17 urban areas, with a base year of 2015–16 = 100.

The SPI for the lowest consumption category, which is up to Rs 17,732, grew by 0.08 percent from 311.97 points to 312.22 points this past week.

0.18 percent,The index of consumption for the lowest consumption groups, which are Rs 17,732-22,888, Rs 22,889-29,517, Rs 29,518-44,175 and above Rs 44,175; increased by 0.13 percent, 0.15 percent, 0.18 and 0.19 percent, respectively.

Nineteen (37.25%) of the fifty-one commodities had price increases over the week, eight (15.69%) had price decreases, and twenty-four (47.06%) had unchanged pricing.

On a weekly basis, the following commodities saw significant price decreases: tomatoes (9.19%), onions (2.14%), LPG (1.04%), bananas (0.53%), wheat flour (0.35%), potatoes (0.17%), pulse masoor (0.16%), and bread (0.05%).

Chicken (4.80%), garlic (2.01%), pulse gramme (1.87%), eggs (1.71%), beef (0.93%), gur (0.89%), pulse moong (0.84%), fresh milk (0.45%), firewood (0.23%), and cigarettes (0.12%) were among the items whose average prices increased significantly week over week.

The commodities that saw a year-over-year decline were: wheat flour (31.75%); cooking oil (13.44%); vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (10.42%); vegetable ghee 1 kg (9.85%); mustard oil (8.33%); eggs (5.82%); rice basmati broken (4.15%); and tea package (2.52%).

Gas prices for Q1 (570.00%), onions (96.01%), pulse gramme (40.39%), powered milk (39.11%), garlic (34.61%), pulse moong (29.77%), men’s sandals (25.01%), beef (23.52%), salt powder (23.28%), pulse mash (22.50%), and energy saver (17.96%) were among the commodities whose average prices increased year over year.

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The price of gold has drastically dropped in Pakistan.

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As per the All-Pakistan Gems and Jewellers Sarafa Association (APGJSA), the cost of 24-karat gold per tola decreased by Rs 2,300, standing at Rs 250,500.

A kilogramme of 24-karat gold costing Rs1,972 less at the local market, making it worth Rs2114,763. Ten grammes of 22-karat gold had a price decrease to Rs196,866 as well.

After losing a significant $43 during the day, the rate per ounce of gold on the international market also decreased. It currently stands at $2,370.

On Thursday, the price of 24-karat silver also experienced a decline, falling by Rs60 to settle at Rs2,860 petal.

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