ISLAMABAD            -      Chairman Senate Standing Committee on Power said Tuesday that if K-Electric CEO fails to attend the upper house panel meeting, he will recommend the federal government to stop supply of 800MW electricity to the company from the national grid. 

Senate Standing Committee on Power, which met with Senator Fida Mohammad in chair, expressed strong disapproval of continuous absence of K-Electric CEO and decided to issue summons if this attitude persists. The committee observed that people of Karachi were facing unending problems when it comes to power supply and the company should be taken to task.

Chairman of the committee asked officials of the power division of what to do with KE? Special Secretary Power division said that KE was a private company. Agha Shahzeb Durrani said no matter the company was public or private as no one was above the parliament.  

Senator Mushahidullah Khan said since privatisation of KE, it had played havoc with lives of Karachiites. He proposed to bring privilege motion against KE CEO.

The committee refused to listen to director of the KE and said the committee will provide last chance to KE CEO to appear before the committee on August 18.

The committee was also briefed by CEO TESCO on utilisation of funds, allocation by the previous government through SDGs for electrification of villages in various erstwhile tribal districts during the last five years along with reasons for not carrying out the work despite the fact that funds were released and material was also procured. The committee was told that 368.06 m were allocated, 252.71 m utilised and the balance was of 115.34 m. Funds were received in April 2018 but ECP imposed ban on development projects due to general elections 2018 and execution was stopped. The committee was assured that 100 percent progress and utilisation will be completed by December 2020.

The matters of suspension and transfer of three Hesco officials, inquiry into alleged offensive behaviour and excessive billing by XEN and SDO of Sepco, heavy bills sent to affectees of floods in Mirani Dam in district Kech, new grid station at Jaura Kalan were also discussed by the committee.

The committee meeting, held here at the Parliament House on Tuesday, was attended among others by Senators Molvi Faiz Muhammad, Maula Bakhsh Chandio, Agha Shahzeb Durrani, Hilalur Rehman, Mirza Muhammad Afridi, Hidayatullah, Mushahidullah Khan, Muhammad Akram, Ghous Niazi.