Khawaja Zaheer Ahmed - PDMA

were made besides resort to importing electricity from Iran and engaging in
controversial rental power stations that multiplied per-unit cost of energy to
compound rising poverty; it also compelled huge investments in gas and diesel
fired generators and UPS equipments.
22. Our fast rising population does not have universal access to safe drinking
water; per capita availability is constantly slipping downhill, also owing to
excessive pumping of underground waters necessitated for controlling water-
logging and salinity. Per capita surface water availability has reduced
significantly; from 5,260 m³ in 1951, with 34 million population, to 1,038 m³ in
2010, when the estimated population is 172 million (WAPDA, 2009). Irrigated
agriculture is the backbone of Pakistan’s economy and will continue to dictate
need for creation of additional water-storage to control flood losses, save river
run off during monsoons, and use the stored water during lean seasons for timely
maturity of winter-spring staple food crops besides boosting electricity generation
from a potential 58,000 Megawatt from our river system. According to WAPDA,
the designated national organization for executing mega projects in the water
sector, the country has a large cultivable base of 72.70 million acres (MA) of
which 52.31 MA is under irrigation. Creation of additional storage facilities could
bring more under plough from the remaining 20.39 MA of culturable waste land,
to expand food production for ever growing domestic demand and by generating
exportable surplus through value additions.
23. Be that it as it may, on the premise of GDP growth as per medium term
plan targets for 2020, projected national demand of electricity is expected to
reach 22,000 MW, against currently estimated supply at 8,000-13,000 MW,
amongst others, due to limited installed capacity, rising fuel prices and massive
circular debt. The country is in dire need to tap as much as is feasible from the
known; stop gap temporary generation of electricity through rental power
thermal-plants is not only expensive but politically unpalatable for other
considerations, as well. As regards, the current water storage capacity is nearly
10% of the total average annual flows of 136 MAF, fast reducing due to
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