Of Power Shortage
By the Editor

OF-LATE, the countrywide electricity shortage has reached an alarming proportion leading to frequent cut downs in supply and breakdowns thus affecting badly the industrial production and causing immeasurable agony to the common man.

As the reports indicate, the present difference in demand and supply is to the extent of about 3000 MW,almost twenty per cent of the requirements, unheard of in the history of the country and the reasons given by the authorities are the closure of about 25 generating units across the country.

Who is to be blamed for the closure of these generating units, why appropriate measures were not taken for their repair and maintenance during the period when the demand was not so high.

At the same time, WAPDA is currently facing a shortfall of about 2550MW in its distribution system and the KESC too is in deficit of about 345MW. Even short-term plans to meet the shortfall have failed to materialize.

There is a hue and cry all over the country due to power outages in the scorching heat. Even the country’s Capital and the sister city of Rawalpindi are in the serious grip of power breakdowns.

In the past during the summer months when glaciers start melting and there is increase in the flow of water in the Tarbela Dam, the generation of electricity had increased but this year it seems that more attention is being given to conserve water for agricultural purposes.

Also successive governments have failed to devise a long term strategy for power generation to meet the shortfall.

Politicians have made the construction of Kalabagh Dam as an issue of life and death for themselves but at the cost of the larger interests of the country and its people.

Had there been larger water reservoirs in place today, there would not have been this worst energy crisis in our national history.

Our line losses of electricity are the highest perhaps in the world due to theft and distribution system.

Amid this scenario, we would strongly urge the authorities to take urgent measures to bring on line the closed units and in the medium-term shift attention of power generation to hydel and nuclear sources as quickly as possible.●