Urging the nation to adopt austerity measures with regard to energy and “urgently change [its] attitudes”, Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday directed setting up a committee to work on reducing electricity consumption in government offices by 30 percent.
Chairing the meeting of the federal cabinet, which discussed the proposed ‘energy saving plan’ presented by the Power Division, Shehbaz said the implementation of the plan and use of alternative energy was indispensable to reduce the import bill in terms of fuel.
According to reports, the committee will consist of the federal minister for energy, federal minister for planning, minister of state for petroleum and natural resources and relevant secretaries. The meeting was informed that the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the National Energy Efficiency and Conversation Authority (National Energy Efficiency and Conversation) had also prepared an awareness campaign about energy-saving and austerity. The participants were briefed on the consultation conducted so far with the stakeholders regarding the energy saving plan.
In this regard, the prime minister said that the consultation process with all stakeholders, including the provincial governments, Azad Jammu and Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan governments, should be completed as soon as possible to ensure implementation of the plan.
The cabinet condemned the arrest of senior parliamentarian Chaudhry Ashraf by the Punjab government in a 53-year-old case and called it a step of political vendetta. The cabinet offered Fateha for those martyred as a result of the incidents of terrorism in different parts of the country. The cabinet paid tribute to the security forces for their continuous fight against terrorism. The meeting was given a detailed briefing by the Ministry of Industries and Production regarding the generalization of the use of electric bikes across the country. It was highlighted that currently 90 companies were manufacturing motorcycles and auto rickshaws in the country with a capacity to manufacture 6 million motorcycles annually.
It was informed that 22 companies had been issued licenses to manufacture electric bikes in Pakistan. The meeting was further informed that the promotion of electric bikes would save a lot in terms of fuel. The use of electric bikes will not only save fuel, but will also prove eco-friendly by reducing carbon emissions.
The prime minister issued instructions to submit a detailed plan regarding electric bikes to the Economic Coordination Committee.
The cabinet accorded final approval to the report of the Cabinet Committee on Soybean. The federal cabinet approved the Government-to-Government Commercial Transaction Act 2022 (G2G Commercial Transaction Act 2022).
On the recommendation of the Board of Investments, the cabinet approved in principle the One Stop Service Act to provide facilities to investors in Special Economic Zones established across the country.
The federal cabinet approved the decisions made in the meetings of the Economic Coordination Committee held on December 21 and November 15. It also approved the decisions made in the meeting of the Cabinet Committee on Privatization held on December 26.
