MEASURES TO ERADICATE ELECTRICITY CRISIS

The policy makers of Pakistan have so far failed to understand one thing. They do talk about making dams and setting up nuclear power plants but why do they not understand the importance and benefits of alternate energy sources such as solar, windmill energy etc. They are cheap and quick methods for producing electricity. Wind turbine is relatively fast to install whereas dams and nuclear plants take five to six years to complete and thermal power plants need two years at least. Similarly wind energy is readily available in the coastal areas. These energy sources if tapped can be of great help in reducing the current demand supply gap.
Pakistan has estimated as the world’s third largest coal reserves of 33 trillion tons in the south-eastern part of the country i.e. Thar. The available resources of the coal are equal to 400 billion barrels of oil. According to a Rawalpindi Chamber of Commerce and Industry (RCCI) press release, the figures were shared by the president of the chamber with the participants of seminar on Power Crisis. The chamber president said that the present resources of the coal could produce 20,000 megawatts electricity for 40 long years but the government had only been depending on hydro power to generate the electricity.
It hardly needs to be emphasized that electricity is the lifeline of national economy and the people at the large. The existing crisis can be addressed by the government by taking prompt measures and by public by taking conservation measures.