Critically evaluate the causes of Energy crisis in Pakistan and its concequences for the ecnomic growth and socail fabric in the country. (Css - 2013)
1. Introduction
2. Causes of energy short fall- failure of the last regime to increase electricity
- Under utilization of the existing generating capacity
- Circular debts
- The repeated cutting down in Public Sector Development Program
- Line loss
- Large scale of theft of electricity
- Wastage of energy by industrial sector
- Over use of energy by transport sector
- Domestic & General wastage
- Corruption and lack of political will in the concerned energy department
3. Consequences of Energy Crunch- Routine life: Badly affected the routine life in Pakistan 8-10 hours laodshedding in cities, 12- 18 hours in rural areas.
- Industries: Many industrial units have closed and many shifted their installation to Bangladesh.
- Rise in the price of commodities.
- Market: Markets are closed early due to the load shedding. Secondly production cost of commodities have raised.
- Agriculture: the agricultural land that is dependent on tube well and dug wells, its yielding capacity has sharply reduced due to load shedding. As crops do not get water in time.
- Strikes and agitation: Due to load shedding many strikes have occurred across the country, destroyed government installations.
- Low National growth:
4. Remedial Measures
a) immediate measures: Firstly, the problem of circular debt should be solved on proiority basis, in order to enable the power companies to clear their debts. Secondly, the agreement of importing electricity from Iron and Tajikistan needs to be implemented in a quick fashion. The Pak- Iron gas pipe line project needs to be completed on the earliest dates.
b) Mid term plan: First, all the gas and inefficient WAPDA plants should be replaced by more efficient and combined cycle plants. Second, there is an urgent need of modernizing the overloaded transmission and distribution system. The expenditure of updating our electricity system could be recovered in only three years through savings from the line loss.
c) Long term plans:(i) Dams construction
(ii) Gas exploration
iii) Coal
vi) Wind energy
v) Solar Energy
iv) Peace and Security in the Country
5. Conclusion: