Govt mulls single date mechanism for issuance, payment of all utility bills

To provide ease to citizens, the government is working on a plan under which all utility bills will be issued on a single date to consumers.

"Every consumer will be able to pay all utility bills in one go either at the bank or at the post office. All utility bills of one consumer will be issued on one date [under the proposal], which will enable them to pay all of them by a given deadline," a senior official told The News.

A three-member committee, headed by the  secretary Power Division and comprising the secretaries of Information Technology and Petroleum & Natural Resources, will discuss how to work out the mechanism.

The meeting is to be held in the light of the decision of a federal cabinet meeting on March 10, 2020. The federal cabinet had later constituted a three-member committee headed by the secretary Power Division to look into the issue of payment of utility bills on multiple dates and devise a mechanism in consultation with all utility companies.

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When contacted, Secretary Power Division Irfan Ali confirmed the development, saying the three-member committee will meet today (Friday) to brainstorm how to arrive at a mechanism that can ensure the issuance of all utility bills on one date.

Currently, each utility issues bills on a different date and requires payment by a different date, because of which the consumer has to go either to the post office or bank at different times to deposit bills.

This not only wastes one’s time, but, under the new scenario that has emerged out of the COVID-19 pandemic, also creates a headache for those practicing social distancing.

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