Powerless plants

OF the many grave challenges Pakistan faces today, economic crisis and poor governance stand out as most ominous. Unfortunately, the country’s enervating energy shortage, which should ordinarily be causing sleepless nights to our leadership, stands compounded by bad management. The decline in the production capacity of thermal power stations in the country by 59 percent as a result of poor maintenance is a case in point. It evokes serious concern when the country faces a shortage of about 4000MW. Things would not have been so bad had the worn-out parts of the machinery at these power plants been replaced at the right moment. One would like to think that the upkeep of this basic infrastructure would not have fallen prey to financial constraints, but seemingly to the indifference of those charged with ensuring a smooth supply of power. And now the entire country is paying the price: industrial, agricultural, commercial and domestic consumers are being put to a great deal of inconvenience. There can perhaps be no greater justification for some heads to roll.