As the dark days have officially landed in Pakistan, the government would be better off snapping out of its denial and getting down the productive business. Instead of issuing a series of deadlines by which those in power expect to finally turn their back on the crippling dragon of electricity shortages, there has arisen a dire need to sort out our priorities. Our energy sector is a mess and on a constant lookout for whatever bone the state can offer it. Such tragic are the times that the relentless load shedding did not even end last year when the whole world was taking note of our flipped situation.
\nBack then, Pakistan was hailed to have as much as 50 per cent too much electricity by 2023 (thank you, CPEC). But the plight of the hapless man walking on the street had not changed then, has not changed now, and unless a divine miracle kicks in, is not likely to change anytime soon.
\nThere\u2019s no denying the fact that the aftershocks of devastation in Ukranian streets have reverberated across the world and beyond. Everyone from Japanese businessmen to European sharks is fast looking for replacements for Russian fuel exports.
\nBut the fault does not lie in the worsening of current affairs but in the continued ignorance of our blind spot. Over the years, governments have tried to incorporate every solution from the playbook to stay true to their resolve of zero load-shedding. This meant partnerships with foreign enterprises for the ruling PML(N) and partnering with a very controversial crusade for Diamer-Bhasha Dam undertaken by a former chief justice for the PTI. Both approaches have failed miserably.
\nTo twist the dagger further in, the freefall of currency in the open market, rampant inefficient by the distribution companies and the ever-in-vogue obsession with stomping feet and obstinately applying the industrial age solutions to problems of a digital age were all allowed to rein in full galore. We have not yet allowed ourselves to even fancy the idea of solar and wind energy. Our much-prized asset has been reduced to a toy in a toddler\u2019s sandbox and can only be used for petty sloganeering.
\nThere can be no greater misfortune than letting the citizenry face the wrath of unbearable summer bonanza as the Neros of their land offer nothing but apologies. The unannounced power outages are bound to eat up whatever vestigial industries are still flickering.
\nWith supply companies bowing out one after another and the government slashing additional fuel surcharges, ordinary consumers continue to dangle between fire and the frying pan.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
As the dark days have officially landed in Pakistan, the government would be better off snapping out of its denial and getting down the productive business. Instead of issuing a series of deadlines by which those in power expect to finally turn their back on the crippling dragon of electricity shortages, there has arisen a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[8498],"class_list":{"0":"post-266243","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","6":"category-editorial","7":"tag-power-cuts"},"yoast_head":"\n