Parliament and state institutions go for extreme fuel and electricity saving

A special methodology should be adopted to inspect the amount saved in the subsequent month in relation to the previous month from electricity, fuel, water and telephone bills of public institutions, a government circular stated.

This was instructed in a circular issued by J.J. Ratnasiri, Secretary to the Ministry of Public Services, Provincial Councils and Local Government.

With regard to saving fuel, the Secretary has instructed the temporary suspension of fuel in addition to the described volume for ministers and public officers to whom vehicles are assigned.

“The number of vehicles in running condition which belong to public institutions is more than 75,000. If it is possible to save one litre of fuel from each vehicle per day, a total of 75,000 litres of fuel can be saved. Approximately, 27,375,000 litres of fuel can be saved annually,” the circular said.

The circular called to restrict as far as possible the calling of officers from distant areas out of Colombo to the offices in Colombo for discussions and meetings. 

The calling of divisional officers for discussions and meetings at district and provincial level is also told to be restricted. Officials are encouraged to use Zoom and Teams for conducting meetings and discussions as far as possible while getting the public to communicate via WhatsApp and SMS instead of visiting public offices.

The circular instructed state institutions to use motorcycles, bicycles or three-wheelers instead of cars or vans to collect or deliver documents/letters. Making arrangements to conduct meetings outside rush hours is also recommended.

The Secretary instructed provincial authorities to make arrangements to issue fuel to farmers in areas where harvesting has begun and to the fisheries community.

“Ensure a representative of the Divisional Secretary and a police officer at all filling stations in order to verify that required fuel reserves are maintained and the fuel distribution is done in a proper way,” the circular said.

Regarding saving electricity, state institutions are told to minimize the usage of elevators, switch off air conditioners from 2.30 p.m. and 4.30 p.m., replace air conditioners with electric fans and to switch off unnecessary bulbs including street lamps.

Speaker Mahinda Yapa Abeywardena today morning instructed officials and MPs to save energy within Parliament premises as much as possible by switching off unnecessary lights.