OGRA recommends reduction in petroleum prices.

ISLAMABAD: The Oil and Gas Regulatory Authority (Ogra) recommended on Monday reduction in prices of all petroleum products from May 1.

Informed sources said Ogra had sent a summary for revision in the prices to Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and Petroleum Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi who are expected to take a decision in this regard on Wednesday.

They said Ogra was expecting significant reduction in oil prices in the first half of the current month. However, some appreciation of dollar against rupee and a rising pricing trend in the international market over the past 10 days dashed those expectations.

Therefore, Ogra has suggested a minor reduction of 34 paisa per litre in the price of petrol. With the reduction the price would come down from the exiting Rs108.31 to Rs107.97 per litre.

The regulator has proposed a reasonable reduction of Rs4.51 per litre in the price of high speed diesel which is mostly used for tube-wells and majority of the freight and public transport vehicles. Its price would be reduced from the existing Rs113.85 to Rs109.34 per litre.

The price of kerosene, the poor man’s fuel mostly used in rural areas, is estimated to drop by Rs3.08 to Rs98.07 from Rs101.15 per litre.

Likewise, the price of light diesel oil has been estimated to come down to Rs94 from Rs94.93 per litre with a reduction of 93 paisa per litre.

The price of high octane blending component has been estimated to drop by Rs1.94 to Rs133.08 form Rs134.63 per litre.

An official said this reduction had been worked out on the basis of maximum petroleum levy permissible under an act of parliament and currently being charged to consumers in full.

Apart from Rs6 to Rs14 per litre petroleum levy, the government also charges 16 per cent general sales tax on the prices of all oil products.

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PIA attains outstanding Profit

KARACHI: The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) has attained operating profit of Rs1.67 billion for the first quarter of 2014 – January 1 to March 31 – as against a loss of Rs5.65 billion of corresponding period last year.

The national flag carrier has attained the operating profit for the first quarter after a lapse of four years.

This was declared in the board of directors meeting, chaired by Secretary Aviation and Chairman PIA, Muhammad Ali Gardezi, held at the airline’s head office here on Tuesday. Managing Director PIA, Muhammad Junaid Younas was also present in the meeting.

According to the results of first quarter 2014, the total revenue stood at Rs28.0 billion as against Rs25 billion of 2013.

However, the net loss after paying financial costs and taxation stood at Rs1.98 billion as against Rs8.62 billion last year, which shows a remarkable decline of almost 77 per cent in losses. The loss per share has dropped from Rs2.86 to Rs0.56.

The government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has been taking bold steps including privatisation to enhance the national flag carrier’s customer services, on time flight arrivals and departures with safety in order to make it a profitable entity.

The premier last week had also given his approval for induction of five new Boeing 777 jetsinto the fleet of Pakistan International Airlines.

The board appreciated performance of the national airline and efforts of Shujaat Azeem, Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Aviation and Chairman PIA Gardezi for the revival of PIA.

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Peace talks continue.

LONDON: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday said that stability of Pakistan would be protected and expressed the hope that the dialogue process with the Pakistani Taliban would yield positive results.

Speaking to media representatives after arriving here on a three-day official visit, he said the dialogue process was started with sincerity as it was good for the country's stability.

“If peace is established through talks and the lawlessness and carnage are controlled, then it is a good thing,” said the prime minister.

The whole world, he added, adopted such mechanisms and referred to the UK's history by saying that the host country had also resolved its issues with Ireland.

About Karachi's situation, Prime Minister Sharif said soon after assuming responsibilities of the government, they took measures for the restoration of peace in the port city.

“We did not waste time. We took all the parties onboard. Through operation, the situation in Karachi is being controlled. Peace in Karachi is dear to us as it is an economic hub and commercial center of Pakistan and we are paying special attention to it,” he said.

About his current visit to the United Kingdom, the premier said it would further strengthen the bonds between the two countries.

He said the agenda for his UK visit was already decided and hoped that his meeting with his British counterpart would bring both the countries further closer.

About Hamid Mir's incident, the prime minister said that all should look towards the commission which has been formed and added that the media in Pakistan was free.

To another query, he replied that the government has been undertaking measures for economic development, which created friendly economic environment, prompting the expatriates to invest in the country and share their part in its development.

“The economic indicators are showing upward and positive trends,” he added.

Minister for Finance and Economic Affairs Ishaq Dar, Special Assistant to PM on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz and Balochistan Chief Minister Dr Abdul Malik Baloch are accompanying the prime minister.

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ECP draws up five year plan (2014-2018)

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has drawn up a second five-year plan (2014-2018), with complete autonomy as one of the 13 objectives to achieve.

According to the plan, the ECP will continue its efforts to achieve complete autonomy, including financial autonomy, and creation of new positions, streng­thening budgeting and procurement procedures for maximum transparency.

The ECP will undertake an assessment of the level of autonomy in line with its constitutional role to organise and conduct free and fair elections and identify areas for improvement by July 2015. It has set December 2016 as the target date for improving areas related to financial autonomy on the basis of findings of an assessment report.

Another goal the commission has set for itself is to improve the ECP’s nationwide infrastructure in line with its constitutional position and important functions it performs in the democratic system.

For this purpose it has planned to acquire land in all districts for construction of its offices and warehouses.

Strengthening IT infrastructure and extending a secure internal network access to provincial, divisional and district offices is also part of the plan.

Another important goal is to ensure that laws and rules related to electoral processes address issues it faced in the previous elections, and reforms are introduced to further strengthen the electoral system.

It will prepare a paper on the issues related to the legal framework in the light of lessons learnt from the 2013 gen­­eral election, by June this year and review amendments to the Representation of People’s Act, 1976, sent to the government prior to the 2013 elections, by March 2015.

It also plans to unify the election laws by improving the earlier draft by September 2015.

Analysis of new local government laws and rules adopted by provincial governments and drafting recommendations is also among the defined objectives.

The commission will devise legal provisions to prevent anyone from barring female voters from exercising their right to franchise, review the Political Parties Order 2002, define uniform rules for political parties, their registration, intra-party elections and allocation of symbols, by March next year.

It will also devise a complete scrutiny process covering each point in the ­nomination form in the light of Articles 62 and 63 of the constitution.

The commission has set the deadline of March 2015 for this purpose.

Yet another goal is to undertake an in-depth analysis of the current system dealing with political finance and strengthen it by removing any gaps and building the ECP’s internal capacity.

Another important goal is to analyse the present system of resolving election complaints and disputes in various phases of electoral processes, and come up with practical measures to remove any anomalies.

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India in the Picture

ISLAMABAD: Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan on Tuesday said that statement of Narendra Modi – Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) candidate for India's premiership – regarding attacking Pakistan to bring back Dawood Ibrahim was “irresponsible and shameful.”

Narendra Modi had said if he wins the elections he would bring fugitive underworld donDawood Ibrahim to India to be tried for the 1993 blasts in Mumbai. He told a Gujarati news channel on Saturday that the previous administrations had not tried hard enough.

Dawood stands convicted in absentia in India for the blasts, together with several Mumbai accomplices. Several pro-Modi analysts, including former diplomats, are showing interest in targeting Pakistan-based clerics and other extremists allegedly involved in terror activities in India.

The BJP leader also criticised Indian Home Minister Sushil Kumar, saying political statements were not necessary for bringing back the Indian don.

“Did President Obama hold a press conference regarding US Navy Seals’ operation in Abbottabad for targeting al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden? … Did he issue any statement or held negotiations with Osama? Modi questioned.

Responding to the BJP leader’s criticism, India’s former home minister Chidambaram had said the government cannot send commandos to bring back Ibrahim.

“Modi should first decide where Dawood Ibrahim is living and then he should dream of attacking Pakistan,” Chaudhry Nisar said in a statement issued here on Tuesday.

The interior minister said it seemed that Modi had not learnt a lesson from his “shameful” actions as the chief minister of Gujrat, which earned him a bad name.

He said this statement from an expected Indian prime minister and leader of a major political party was provocative and condemnable showing enmity towards Pakistan.

Narendra Modi had crossed all limits in his enmity towards Pakistan and Muslims, and his election as Indian prime minister would destabilise the region, he added.

The interior minister said those, who were levelling charges that Pakistan was sheltering Dawood Ibrahim and thinking to launch an operation on its soil, should know that neither Pakistan was a weak country to be afraid of such threats, nor the nation could be threatened with such irresponsible statements.

Chaudhry Nisar said the efforts of the Pakistani government for peace in the region should not be construed as its weakness. Its leadership, people and particularly its armed forces have the right and power to pay back in the same coin, he added.

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IESCO revises power over power supply.

ISLAMABAD: In a bid to clear outstanding dues of billions of rupees, the capital’s electricity company disconnected power supply to most major government departments on Tuesday to demonstrate its commitment to cracking down on power thieves and defaulters.

The Islamabad Electric Supply Company (Iesco) cut power to the Prime Minister’s Secretariat, President House, Supreme Court and Pakistan Secretariat, including the offices of the Ministry of Water and Power.

But the blackout was short lived. Power was restored to the Supreme Court within half an hour of the disconnection.

Basit Zaman, an Iesco spokesperson, told Dawn that power was restored upon receipt of payment of outstanding bills from the Pakistan Works Department (PWD).

The country’s leadership remained largely unaffected by the power cuts. Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was already en route to the United Kingdom when his offices were cut off from the national grid. The president’s residence is equipped with standby generators that are switched on if the power supply is suspended.

The PWD is responsible for maintenance and utilities for the PM Secretariat and the offices of the chief justice and cabinet ministers. The Capital Development Authority has jurisdiction over President’s House, parliament and Pakistan Secretariat, the seat of the bureaucracy.

Zaman said his company kept getting calls from different government departments, promising to clear their dues as soon as possible and asking for power to be restored. “However, we had instructions not to restore power until we received cheques against the outstanding bills,” he said.

Govt commitment

Speaking to journalists ahead of the power cuts, Minister of State for Water and Power Abid Sher Ali said the government would not discriminate against anyone and was committed to action against electricity thieves and defaulters. He said the prime minister had been quite firm with the power sector team on Monday and reprimanded them for being lenient in recovering outstanding dues.

He said the Sindh government had publicly disowned about 5,000 public sector consumers who were either illegally tapping power lines or had not paid their bills.

Sher Ali said the total outstanding dues to power companies stood at Rs475 billion, with another Rs33bn added to the total in the current fiscal year.

According to the minister, Sindh owed power companies Rs56bn, Punjab Rs3.4bn and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan governments owed Rs2.5bn each. In addition, nearly Rs70bn was yet to be recovered from tubewell-owners in Balochistan.

In parts of KP and Sindh, nearly 90 per cent of power connections were illegal and the government had identified areas with a high density of defaulters for 18-20 hours of loadshedding. Areas with the least outstanding dues should expect only up to 6-8 hours of loadshedding at the height of the power crisis, he said

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