Pakistan’s HIV-affected children reach nearly 7,500

  ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s federal government paid a total of Rs6,405 billion to Independent Power Producers (IPPs) in capacity payments between 2020 and 2025, the National Assembly has been informed, highlighting the growing financial burden associated with the country’s power sector. According to a written response submitted by Federal Minister for Energy Awais Ahmad Leghari, capacity payments increased significantly during the five-year period despite government efforts to renegotiate power purchase agreements and reduce electricity costs. The figures presented to the National Assembly show that capacity payments rose from Rs613.9 billion in FY2020-21 to Rs1,807 billion in FY2024-25. This represents an increase of approximately 194% over the period. The government paid Rs613.9 billion in capacity charges during FY2020-21. The amount increased to Rs775.9 billion in FY2021-22 before rising sharply to Rs1,307 billion in FY2022-23. Capacity payments reached their highest level during FY2023-24, when the government paid around Rs1.902 trillion to IPPs. Although the amount declined slightly in FY2024-25 to Rs1.807 trillion it remained almost three times higher than the amount paid in FY2020-21. Capacity payments are charges made to power producers for keeping their generating plants available to supply electricity, regardless of whether the full generation capacity is actually utilised. These payments are part of the contractual arrangements between the government and IPPs and have frequently been identified as one of the factors contributing to Pakistan’s expensive electricity system and growing circular debt. Responding to questions in the National Assembly, Energy Minister Awais Ahmad Leghari said the government has taken several measures to reduce the financial pressure created by existing power agreements. According to the minister, a government task force has terminated power purchase agreements with six IPPs, while agreements with several other producers have also been revised. The objective of these measures is to reduce electricity costs and limit the financial burden on the national power sector. The Ministry of Energy estimates that the changes made to the agreements could result in savings of approximately Rs4.3 trillion over the remaining life of the contracts. Leghari also clarified that payments made to power producers are based on tariffs determined by the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (Nepra) and the terms agreed under the relevant power purchase agreements. He rejected the impression that generators were receiving payments outside the approved contractual and regulatory framework, stating that there were no additional payments beyond the applicable arrangements. Despite the government’s renegotiation efforts, the figures show that capacity payments continue to represent a major financial obligation for Pakistan. The Rs1.807 trillion paid in FY2024-25 alone demonstrates the scale of the challenge facing the country’s power sector. The government’s efforts to terminate and revise agreements are expected to provide substantial savings in the coming years. However, reducing capacity payments and addressing the broader issues of electricity pricing, power utilisation and circular debt remain critical challenges for Pakistan’s energy sector.

ISLAMABAD: The Federal Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education (FBISE) has announced the results of the Secondary School Certificate (SSC) Part-I and Part-II First Annual Examination 2026, revealing strong overall performance while introducing artificial intelligence (AI) in the paper-marking process for the first time. The results were officially declared during a ceremony in Islamabad, where Federal Minister for Education and Professional Training Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui inaugurated the announcement. Addressing the event, FBISE Chairman Prof Dr Ikram Ali Malik highlighted the Board’s efforts to ensure smooth and transparent examinations. He said a total of 292,831 students appeared in the SSC examinations this year, with 1,006 examination centres established across the country. To oversee the process, 2,012 supervisory staff members and 6,996 invigilators were deployed. The chairman also revealed that more than 10,700 teachers applied to assess examination papers, while 4,855 examiners were selected for the task. He described the introduction of AI-assisted marking as a major step towards improving accuracy and efficiency in the evaluation process. During the examination period, 86 cases involving the use of unfair means were reported. According to the results, SSC Part-I recorded an overall pass percentage of 59.77 per cent, with 88,646 students passing out of 150,077 candidates. SSC Part-II achieved a significantly higher success rate of 91.33 per cent, as 128,070 of the 141,653 candidates cleared the examinations. In the Science Group, Afeera Ijaz secured the top position with 1,089 marks. Amna Nauman claimed second place with 1,088 marks, while Huzaifa Haider finished third with 1,086 marks. Among Humanities students, Fatima Zahra emerged as the overall topper with 1,037 marks. Muhammad Maaz and Manaal Zahid shared second position after each scoring 1,031 marks, while Aneesa Nisar secured third place with 1,023 marks. The Board said the introduction of AI-assisted marking reflects its commitment to modernising Pakistan’s examination system while maintaining transparency and fairness in the assessment process.