The Kalabagh dam (KBD) is the only short-term option to overcome the energy crisis and revive the country's stagnant economy, former finance minister and prominent economist Dr Salman Shah said on Friday. He was speaking at an energy conference arranged by Pakistan Muslim League (Q) here on Friday.
Urging the Pakistan Peoples Party and Awami National Party (ANP) leaderships to reconsider their stands on building the dam, he said KBD was a feasible project and it could be constructed in just four years to produce 4,000 megawatts of electricity at a rate of just Rs 1.5 per unit.
Asserting that the PPP's founding chairman Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was in favour of KBD, he said that if KBD had been there, the national economy would not have been in such a pathetic state. "It would be a misfortune for the country if the government did not end reliance on thermal electricity. If we do not build dams, India would turn us into a desert," Dr Shah warned.
Regretting inaction on part of the government, he said that although the federal cabinet had approved the construction of six dams, including the Kalabagh dam, in 2006, not even a single dam had been built, because of which the entire nation is suffering. Dr Shah said that Shujaat formula could end 75 per cent of load-shedding for three months. Under this formula, the provinces were to surrender 10 per cent of their revenues receivable from the federal government every month for payment to IPPs for electricity generation. He said that provision of adequate energy would enable the industry to maximise production. Through collection of more revenue, the federal government would be able to repay the deducted amounts to the provinces after one year, he opined.
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