Nawaz says never promised to end loadshedding in 6 months

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AFP
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Nawaz says never promised to end loadshedding in 6 months
ISLAMABAD: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday said his government’s priority was completion of mega development projects and to rid the country of its chronic loadshedding problem by 2017.

Addressing the ground breaking of the 24-km signal-free corridor of Islamabad Expressway, he said he never promised during electioneering that the electricity loadshedding will be eliminated in 6 months after coming into power.

Besides development of infrastructure the government was equally concentrating on the energy related projects, he added.

Rejecting recommendations to increase POL prices in the month of July, PM Nawaz said that despite oil prices being raised in the international market they would remain unchanged in Pakistan.

Also Read: ‘POL prices will remain unchanged in July’

Prime Minister Sharif said Pakistan today was at a ‘take-off position’ with investment pledges of $46 billion under the China Pakistan Economic Corridor.

He said funding for development projects like Rawalpindi-Islamabad Metro were being made without disturbing the annual Public Sector Development Program. He rejected claims of the critics of Metro Bus project, who according to him said that funds for the project were diverted from other projects.

The Prime Minister said his government was giving equal importance to addressing the problem of power loadshedding, adding that the prevailing year has witnessed less loadshedding as compared to the last year.

He mentioned a number of ongoing projects including the 960MW Neelum-Jhelum, 1,400MW Tarbella-IV and 1,000MW by LNG that would help address the issue. He said his government has the credit of lowering the tariff of per unit of electricity by Rs5.32.

The Prime Minister mentioned the upgradation of the M2 Motorway that needed its mandatory 10 year maintenance but was neglected and his government had to undertake the project.

He said the needful maintenance of the M2 should have been done in 2008–APP/Geo News