The State Bank that has on its shoulders a rather complex job of keeping an eye on the economy has made the highly apt observation in its annual report for 2012 that owing to the growing water shortage, large reservoirs have become inevitable. The report showed concern over loss to the Kharif crops resulting from late monsoon this season.
The grim picture that the bank has painted is pretty much obvious but unfortunately some especially the PPP setup that knew about it very well from day one continues to look the other way. One wonders whether the politicians still bickering over the Kalabagh Dam are aware that their squabbling has led the country to the brink of an economic disaster or are aware that it were mainly the large dams that enabled the present-day developed nations to take rapid strides towards prosperity. Never mind the bank’s warning or the Lahore High Court’s exhortation or even the prevailing abyss of loadshedding; all that matters is that they have a political football to fiddle with while the economy crumbles. Granted there is Bhasha Dam but it is many years, almost a decade away and besides it is wrong to think it would alone be enough. Kalabagh, arguably the only project that suits our needs is the best option available. The bank’s report constitutes a clarion call for the leadership across the political divide to give a go-ahead for the dam’s construction.