Gas prices hike: is it not against OGRA Ordinance?
The loss of 94 billion and 58 billion will be borne by the masses and government respectively.
(Web Desk) – The government of PTI has decided to raise the prices of gas by 143 per cent. These are indeed the household consumers who are mostly stealing gas and with this, they will try to do it more. Furthermore this segment cannot yield much profit. The government should have focused over the increment of gas prices for the commercial consumers. This sector is earning the real profit and from that chunk it might have been plain sailing to pay excessive amount as taxes to the government.
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Gas companies should avoid getting indulged into nepotism, political interference, corruption and other ills which are indeed destroying gas sector.
At this time, from the loss of Rs152 billion, Rs94 billion will have to be paid by the consumers and the remaining Rs58 billion will be borne by the government itself. A burning question is till when this practice will remain in action.
Moreover, it is primarily the commercial sector where gas is theft. Both the organizations which deal with matters related to gas are working under Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (OGRA) and get 17 per cent profit no matter how much loss they are rendering to the national exchequer. Increasing gas prices is indeed against OGRA Ordinance.
Previous government of PML-N stopped the increment for more than 2 years which is also against the law and should have been probed earlier.
Government is trying to make the commercial sector bound to use RLNG which is expensive and will make the cost of production overwhelming high. The ultimate losers will be the masses.
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To control the wild inflation, one of the methods is to upsurge the living standard of the people. For power plants, the price of gas has increased to only 40 per cent. Federal Minister for Petroleum Ghulam Sarwar Khan is of the view that prices of electricity will not be increased, but that is another thing and indeed the task of NEPRA. It is indeed high time to raise the living standard of common man so that he could bear regular hike in prices of basic necessities.
Concerning the gas prices hike, the concerns of PPP have also been snubbed. PPP craved for Council of Common Interests (CCI), instead of Economic Coordination Committee (ECC), to look into the matter but that was thoroughly ignored.
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At this time, from the loss of Rs152 billion, Rs94 billion will have to be paid by the consumers and the remaining Rs58 billion will be borne by the government itself. A burning question is till when this practice will remain in action. Breaking the evil nexus of corruption and nepotism should be implemented at the earliest only then the gas sector will yield some positive results.
Source Roznama Dunya
Translated and edited by Junaid Ali Malik
