Sunday, 1 January, 2023 I 8 Jamadi us Sani, 1444 I Rs 15.00 | Vol XIII No 183 I 12 Pages I Islamabad Edition
Cabinet set to approve energy Conservation plan g
12-point proposed plan will be presented to federal cabinet meeting to be held next week profit report AhmAd AhmAdAni
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he upcoming federal cabinet meeting is likely to grant its approval to a proposed 12-point energy conservation plan to benefit the country with rs 353 billion worth annual savings, it was reliably learnt on saturday. according to sources, a 12-point energy conservation plan has been devised which will be presented during the next week in the upcoming meeting of the federal cabinet for its approval. they said that multiple sessions were held in power division to identify and evaluate and strategize potential energy efficiency and conservation measures. and, it was noticed that there was an urgent need for upgradation of energy efficiency and conservation standards and strict enforcement/compliance. they said replacement of inefficient appliances and consumer awareness for responsible use of energy were other key areas which were identified for action as a national priority. federal minister for defence khawaja muhammad asif has completed consultation with the stakeholders, said sources. after thorough consultation and evaluation of various efficiency and conservation measures, a detailed plan and implementation strategy had been developed, they added. “if the federal cabinet grants its approval to the proposed energy conservation plan then it will benefit by rs 353 billion worth annual savings to the country,” said sources. they added that the proposed 12point energy conservation plan can benefit the country only with the cooperation of federal and provincial governments. documents available with profit disclosed the implementation roadmap of the proposed 12-point energy conservation plan under which several measures including work from home, wedding halls timings, restaurants, hotels and markets closing timings, deadline to stop manufacturing of inefficient fans, stopping manufacturing of incandescent bulbs, procurement of energy efficient fans, led/energy efficient equipment by public sector organisation, energy efficient housing, mandatory conical baffles for new geysers, installation of conical baffles in existing geysers, alternate switching-off streetlights, encouraging e-bikes, energy con-
servation awareness campaigns through media/social media and tV etc, and water conservation have been proposed. and, in this regard, cabinet division, ipc (for coordination with provinces), ministry of industries and production, fbr, ppra, neeca, power division, provincial governments, pakistan engineering council (pec), ministry of science & technology, ministry of petroleum, sngpl/ssgcl, cabinet division, provincial chief secretaries, ict/cda, pemra will play role to implements the proposed energy conservation plan in the country. Under the proposed energy conservation plan, work from home of the 20 percent staff can save rs 58 billion while wedding halls timings will be limited to 10 pm, restaurants, hotels and markets closing timings be limited to 8pm and this measures after implementation can save rs 62 billion per annum while cabinet division, ipc (for coordination with provinces) will issue directions to the provinces under article 149 (4) of constitution of pakistan to implement the said measures. similarly, the deadline set to stop manufacturing of inefficient fans is July 1st 2023 while it is projected that imposition of tax/duty on inefficient fans can save rs 15 billion and the ministry of industries and production, federal board of revenue (fbr) will play their role to implement this measure. likewise, stopping manufacturing of incandescent bulbs is february 1st 2023 and imposition of tax/duty on inefficient bulbs can save rs 22 billion while ministry of industries and production, and fbr will ensure implementation of this
measure. furthermore, procurement of energy efficient fans, led/energy efficient equipment by public sector organisations (public sector only to procure energy efficient equipment) will be ensured by ppra, and neeca. as per the implementation roadmap of the proposed energy conservation plan, energy efficient measures to be incorporated in building codes/housing societies bye-laws by civic/building control authorities and power division, provincial governments, pakistan engineering council will ensure the implementation of it. ministry of industries and production, ministry of science & technology, ministry of petroleum, sngpl/ssgcl will ensure implementation of mandatory conical baffles for new geysers manufacturing by december 2023, and installation of conical baffles in existing geysers in one year can save rs 92 billion annually while it will start from islamabad immediately after its approval. it is also learnt from the document that cabinet division, provincial chief secretaries will ensure implementation of alternate switching-off streetlights by issuing directions to provinces under article 149(4) of constitution of pakistan and this measure can save rs 4 billion/annum. according to available documents, e-bikes shall be encouraged while duties to be eliminated on e-bike manufacturing, establishment of charging stations starting from lahore & islamabad and ministry of industries and production, and fbr will ensure implementation of this measure.
COAS for national consensus to help country meet economic, security challenges KArACHi stAff report
chief of army staff (coas) general syed asim munir has stressed the need for a national consensus to steer the country out of the current economic and security challenges. he was speaking as the chief guest at the commissioning parade of 118th midshipmen and 26th short service commission held at the pakistan naval academy, in karachi, on saturday. earlier upon arrival at the academy, the coas was received by chief of the naval staff admiral amjad khan niazi. “pakistan is passing through one of her most critical junctures and this requires development of national consensus by all stakeholders to sail through the confronted challenges of economy
and terrorism,” gen munir was quoted as saying at the parade by the military’s media wing, the ispr. the coas congratulated the commissioning term for successful completion of training and becoming guardians of maritime frontiers of pakistan. “maritime domain is continuously shifting, mainly due to technological advancement, wherein only those navies would prevail and prove effective that would align with professionalism and modern trends of warfare,” he further said. the army chief appreciated pakistan naval academy for imparting quality education not only to pakistani cadets but also to cadets from friendly countries. he advised the young officers as future leaders to lead by their conduct, character, professional acumen, and
foresight. later, the chief guest gave away awards to the cadets with outstanding performances. the prestigious Quaid-iazam gold medal was awarded to lt kashif abdul Quyyom pn for his overall best performance. midshipman naufil malik was awarded the coveted sword of honour for his overall best performance. army chief gen munir also visited malir garrison where he laid a floral wreath at the martyrs’ monument. he also addressed the officers of karachi corps, rangers and other cafs at malir garrison. the coas underscored the need for focus on profession and demands of modern warfare and directed information operations. earlier on arrival, the coas was received by lieutenant general babar iftikhar, commander karachi corps.
How feasible is Thar coal railway? g
is now right time for long-awaited proJect? profit report AsAd UllAh KAmrAn
the long-awaited project of connecting the thar coal deposit by railway to the pakistan railway network is set to soon receive financing. pc-i of the project has reportedly been prepared and is expected to be approved soon”. the total project cost of rs 58.240 billion would be supported on an equal cost sharing basis through the public sector development programme and the annual development plan. Background information prime minister shehbaz sharif had instructed on october 5th that the thar coal mines be linked to the country’s railway network by march 2023. during a conference presided over by the prime minister, it was determined that the federal and sindh governments would work together to complete the project of connecting thar coal mines to the rail network. during the conference he further stated that the connection of thar coal mines to the railway network, local coal would be used in power plants instead of imported coal. this would save $2 billion per year from the power plants that were previously using imported coal. on march 8, 2019, special assistant to the prime minister on power sector of the previous government convened a meeting of all stakeholders to finalise the modalities for thar coal mines rail connectivity project. as a result, pakistan railways freight transport company (prftc) conducted a bankable feasibility study for the thar coal mines rail connectivity with the national railways network from July 2019 to march 2020 on the advice of the ministry of railways following rapprochement by engro energy limited through a joint venture of consultants. the goal of the feasibility study was to examine the overall potential for extending rail links strategically and to make suggestions for project implementation of the most acceptable development option in terms of track alignment, technical standards, financials, and organisation. the final version of this feasibility study was submitted in may 2020. it is undeniable that development projects of this nature would be extremely beneficial in the long run. given the long expected life of the thar coal mine, development projects around it would yield benefits in the development of labour skills, employment and would facilitate cost effective transportation of thar coal around the country. Who will execute the project ? the company assigned the role of developing this project is the pakistan railway freight transportation company (prftc)”. the primary objective of this company as the name suggests is to handle the “movement of freight, specially coal by rail from port area at karachi to up-country”. the company is granted immense power in terms of planning, designing, operating and managing the operations of freight transportation. the company also has complete authority to procure, own, control and maintain locomotives and rolling stock for the purpose of transporting coal. prftc has further authority to develop as well as maintain its own terminals, maintenance depots, yards, sidings and other ancillary facilities. the government has granted these powers to the company to ensure efficient transportation of freight. Why is a railway needed? rail transportation is critical for any economy as it allows for the shipment of raw commodities over great distances. apart from coal, railways can facilitate the flow of passengers and other types of freight deeper into sindh. rail has the capacity of no other land transportation option, as train wagons can carry up to 100 tons of freight, more than three times that of a truck. another essential feature is economies of scale, which means that fixed costs per unit would decrease as volume increased.
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