Nearly half of Pakistanis unaware of Punjab govt's power bills relief: survey

KARACHI: A recent Gallup Pakistan survey, released just months after the Punjab government's electricity bill relief initiative was announced, has revealed that at least 48% of Pakistanis are aware of it while 47% of people expressed ignorance over it.

In August, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz supremo Nawaz Sharif announced that the Punjab government had prepared a relief package for the masses by cutting the power tariff by Rs14 per unit for people consuming up to 500 units of electricity.

"The relief will be given in the bills of August and September," he had added.

The move drew criticism from other provinces with Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) decrying the 'use of provincial card' in electricity-related issues.

However, according to the survey, awareness is notably higher.

The survey revealed that awareness is significantly higher among urban residents, with 59% acknowledging the relief, compared to the 52% of those in rural areas who are unaware of this, The News reported.

Additionally, the survey also resulted in gender disparities as 58% of men are informed about the relief, while 40% remain uninformed.

Meanwhile, in contrast, 55% of women are also unaware of the relief, with only 37% acknowledging the initiative.

In cities, 59% are aware of electricity bill relief, while 39% said they were unaware. However, 52% of rural population is unaware of electricity bill relief, while 41% said they know about it.