NEPRA limits internal transparency following leak of unauthorized perks increase

ISLAMABAD: The National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA), known for offering its top officials princely salaries and perks—some of which were reportedly increased without approval from the competent forum—has now imposed strict restrictions on the visibility of official documents, effectively turning the regulatory body into a security-centric entity.
This move comes in the wake of recent staff transfers and the leak of an internal document that revealed the unauthorized enhancement of perks without formal approval from the Cabinet Division, which oversees regulatory bodies.
Sources claim that NEPRA is also amending its regulations to extend further benefits to certain “blue-eyed” individuals in recognition of their so-called “precious” services.
In a circular titled “Nomination of Authorized Professionals for Accessing Enterprise Content Management (ECM),” NEPRA’s Registrar, Waseem Anwar Bhinder, stated that access to signed meeting minutes would now be limited strictly to members of the Authority and the Director (C&I), with the IT Department tracking all downloads to prevent data misuse. Additionally, only authorized professionals will be allowed to download working papers and annexures from ECM, while sensitive documents will be protected with passwords.
The ION also noted that general ECM access for staff will be revoked, and downloading permissions will be restricted. Heads of Departments (HODs) are now required to submit both hard and soft copies of working papers to the C&I Department for onward transmission to the Authority for meeting scheduling.
NEPRA has instructed HODs to submit the names and designations of professionals who should be granted ECM download access no later than April 28, 2025.
The regulator is already facing public criticism for failing to process review petitions submitted by ordinary citizens—many of whom cannot afford NEPRA’s steep filing fees. Ends