Faisalabad: The Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) Faisalabad continues to suffer an annual deficit of PKR 851.38 million due to rising electricity rates and a tariff summary delayed since 2006, a news source reported. As per the publication, WASA Faisalabad is an autonomous agency and makes its income from the minimal subsidy provided by the Punjab government.
Reportedly, the agency utilises the said subsidy to pay for the increasing costs of maintenance and operation of water supply, electric bills, drainage and sewerage system, salaries, allowances, and pensions. However, its revenue cannot even pay the incurred electricity bills because the tariffs have not been updated since 2006.
In the last three years, WASA improved its revenue recovery to PKR 1,138.69 million from 745.631 million, but still could not bridge the deficit because of the escalating electricity costs and an increasing number of pensions. While the WASA has discussed its financial troubles with the Punjab government, the provincial government has yet to approve a bailout package for the agency.
