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ISLAMABAD: A plan to import up to 4,000 megawatts of electricity from across the eastern border to overcome Pakistan’s energy shortfall has stalled amid rising extremist sentiments in India following the ascension of Narendra Modi.
“How can we push for electricity import [from India] when those at the helm of affairs in India are taking an extremely anti-Pakistan posture,” a senior official from the Ministry of Water and Power told Dawn.
The Modi administration is not only taking a hawkish stance against Pakistan, but is also refusing to come to the negotiating table and is encouraging extremist groups to attack Pakistani visitors, including singers, writers and sportsmen, he said.
Take a look: Indian power plants worth $19bn struggle to find customers
Water and Power Minister Khawaja Asif told the Senate last week that Pakistani and Indian officials had discussed plans for importing 500mw from India in April 2012. Two years after these discussions, M/s Adani Enterprises Ltd (AEL) of India visited Pakistan in April 2014 to discuss matters related to the import.
In the written statement, the minister detailed how AEL had submitted a draft to the ministry, proposing the export of 500-800MWs in two-three years as a starting point, recommending an eventual scale-up to 3500-4000MWs. “But no further progress was made in this regard,” Mr Asif said.
The minister for water and power also informed the Senate about plans to import electricity from Iran and the Central Asian Republics of Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.
He said that Islamabad was currently negotiating with Tehran for the import of 1000MW, which could be increased to 3000MW, at an estimated tariff ranging between 8 and 11 cents per kilowatt hour.
Separately, Islamabad and Tehran are also in discussion for the import of an additional 30MW to add to the existing 74MW being supplied to Balochistan. In addition, import of 100MW of electricity from Iran was also being negotiated for the Gwadar port at a rate of 6.25 cents per unit.
However, because of the uncertainty over when sanctions against Iran would be lifted, the minister said the exact timeframe for actual power supplies could not be committed. Nevertheless, the import of an additional 30MW for Balochistan would be available by January 2016.
Regarding proposed power imports from the CARs, the minister said that agreements for procurement of electricity from the CASA-1000 project were currently under various phases of implementation.
Pakistan plans to import 1000 to 1300MW from the Tajik and Kyrgyz republics during the summer months, when electricity shortfall touches critical levels because of lower hydropower generation and increased demand.
The minister said that the feasibility study based tariff for the CASA-1000 project imports was put at 9.41 cents per unit in Pakistan. “The supply from the project will start during summer of 2018,” he said.
Published in Dawn, October 21st, 2015
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Comments (117) Closed
Oct 21, 2015 07:01am
Wonder who has business interests to be pushing for such an agreement with india? No need to increase dependency on india. Have some respect for kashmiri muslims getting killed in india? Please some diginity first, business interests later. Time to show patriotism.
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Oct 21, 2015 07:05am
after reading this article. I feel shamed and surprised that we Pakistani are not be able to generate electricity. we are not be able to build dams. we are not be able to installed winds power plants.
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Oct 21, 2015 07:06am
Electricity is made of running electrons and not of any sentiments and it help people and brings progress.Why keeping people in penury when you are getting electricity low cost.
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Oct 21, 2015 07:07am
Another Governmental psycho talking India talks. What happened to Governmental energy projects? Previous government was investing on many energy projects on daily basis and so is this government. Is anyone keeping a watch what projects are approved and where money been dispersed? Nuclear plants, solar plants, further Dams for Hydroelectricity? Many coal and gas power plants were ordered by this and previous government. Who is running the government? Ayub Khan alone made many dams and energy efficient Pakistan in no time, what has happened to current Government? May be its time to outsource Governance of Pakistan to outside corporation, they will run Pakistan more efficiently in no time, roads, dams, electricity and food issues will resolve in no time. Pakistan has issues with Governance and civil service. These two branches be out sourced as soon as possible. No need for these provincial and Federal cabinets, just draining the economy.
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Oct 21, 2015 07:24am
create ur own power
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Oct 21, 2015 07:24am
AEL Ltd provides power in Australia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and parts of India, does not provide power on credit, perhaps that is why it got shelved.
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Oct 21, 2015 07:42am
Wait until the dust settles. I'm sure, one day this talk also be resumed and it'll be win-win for both the countries.
P.S. Best of luck to AEL-Pak from Maharashtra, India.
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Oct 21, 2015 07:45am
Pakistan should generate and is capable of generating the Power
What it needs, provided it wills strongly.
Give a free hand and incentive to Engineers and see.
There will be no reason of Power shortage in the country.
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Oct 21, 2015 08:03am
Are you joking, Bangalore where I live has powercuts 12 hours a day and due to attacks on muslims , i am planning to seek asylum in pakistan and settle down in GB/Azad Kashmir.
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Oct 21, 2015 08:04am
No need to buy power from India when power from Iran and CARs is available. Power is an important national security commodity and should not be bought from potentially hostile nations, which unfortunately India is very much at this point in time.
Therefore, we should look west. In fact, instead of buying gas from Iran to create power in Pakistan, Pakistani companies should be encouraged to set up power plants in Iran near gas fields to sell to Pakistan. It could be as simple as connecting the Iran and Pakistan into one electrical grid. It is much cheaper to transport electricity than gas. Of course gas would still have to be imported for heat and cooking.
In the future, we could also explore integrating the electricity grids of Pakistan, Iran and the CAR countries (and if feasible India). This will create a large market where private companies in any country can sell their excess electricity to another country.
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Oct 21, 2015 08:19am
What is needed is reform in power sector and reduction in line losses (that is, theft) in the country. There are swathes of areas where electricity bills are not paid. Then import of fuel and local generation of electricity seems to be better choice than importing electrical power from Central Asian countries due to transmission losses owing to long distance.
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Oct 21, 2015 08:28am
India has huge power shortage and if India plans to export power then it is the biggest joke of the millennium.
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Oct 21, 2015 08:29am
A Nuclear power signing deal for 30MW of power. Pathetic!
This amount can be generated by gwadar citizens with rooftop solar panels.
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Oct 21, 2015 08:30am
interconnect all rivers and ensure water harvesting in each house with no rain water flow into sea. Even each house may generate its own electricity by solar and harvesting system
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Oct 21, 2015 08:32am
@Zak
Wise people pay attention to what is being said and not the messenger.
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Oct 21, 2015 08:40am
Pakistan should arrange to produce its own energy at every cost
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Oct 21, 2015 08:40am
Good....what the hell is the Indian central/state govt doing offering electricity to Pakistan.....we still have places where there is no/little electricity
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Oct 21, 2015 08:45am
Thank God......!
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Oct 21, 2015 08:55am
“How can we push for electricity import [from India] when those at the helm of affairs in India are taking an extremely anti-Pakistan posture,”.
Providing electricity to Pakistan will be a pro-Pakistani step by Modi, let him do it.
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Oct 21, 2015 08:55am
Please avoid getting blackmail for 4000 MW of electricity because India will simply shut it down whenever there will be some fresh issue between the two countries. Pakistanis are better with out electricity than it,s import from India.
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Oct 21, 2015 08:58am
@Rohit
Yes you are absolutely right, there are so many places in India where electricity has not reached at all.
Now i realized how Adani group share price has jumped to 20 times higher.
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Oct 21, 2015 09:07am
Get energy from both India and Iran. Please do not mix politics with the business of people's need for power. Who cares if Modi is in power or somebody else is as long as power can be bought from India. In addition, Pakistan can make some power of its own. Government must serve the governed whichever way is possible.
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Oct 21, 2015 09:12am
Pakistan is worst in terms of power generation. Bangladesh has improved power infrastructure & exporting more than pakistan.
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Oct 21, 2015 09:17am
India became the world's third largest producer of electricity in the year 2013 with 4.8% global share in electricity generation surpassing Japan and Russia.
The utility electricity sector in India had an installed capacity of 278.733 GW as of 30 September 2015.[1] Renewable Power plants constituted 28% of total installed capacity and Non-Renewable Power Plants constituted the remaining 72%. The gross electricity generated by utilities is 1,106 TWh (1,106,000 GWh) and 166 TWh by captive power plants during the 2014–15 fiscal.
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Oct 21, 2015 09:22am
As usual. An equal loss for both countries.
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Oct 21, 2015 09:23am
Sad , we are power surplus now in punjab , in fact 2 thermal stations are closed because of no takers and we have discount on night tariff , It could have been a win win situation for both countries.
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Oct 21, 2015 09:28am
No need to import from India - pick someone else.
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Oct 21, 2015 09:32am
Given the ground reality in Afghanistan, Pakistan should rule out possibility of importing electricity via Afghanistan. Instead , should focus on rerouting power lines via Chinese territory for safe supplies.
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Oct 21, 2015 09:42am
They will spend billions importing energy but not invest in Plan and Machinery to produce themselves because their kickbacks would stop.
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Oct 21, 2015 09:42am
There is a difference in a "plan" as the Ministry calls it and an idea being discussed as a proposal. The whole thing never materialized into a Plan and I hope we are not going to blame India or Modi for the problems we have been staring at for decades in energy sector due to lack of competence and planning.
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Oct 21, 2015 09:45am
Pakistani leaders have to have political will to import power from India .
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Oct 21, 2015 09:50am
Hmm...Interesting !! I live in South India and we have power shortage. How come India is in a position to supply power to other countries when there is domestic need ??
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Oct 21, 2015 09:55am
Ok. Don't buy.
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Oct 21, 2015 09:58am
@Omkar good info..
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Oct 21, 2015 10:01am
No country in the world produces every thing they need.that's why we trade.Both Pakistan and India tried to normalize trade couple of years ago. India even granted most favoured trade status to Pakistan. Mr.Sharif was all excited about it. But some one put brakes on the whole deal. Both countries can benefit from trade instead of importing from and exporting to far off countries.
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Oct 21, 2015 10:21am
Sounds a lot like....we will eat grass but fight for 1000 years !!!
Denying their people power while they sit in ac offices, houses and cars. When will Pakistani people learn that business is not about emotions......this mentality of hum toh duba hain sanam tum ko bhi le dubanga is so 1970's...think what is best for your people and not 'how can we stop India from making some money !!!
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Oct 21, 2015 10:22am
No peace causing various obstructions and who is the loser? Both countries. Hoping some final solution is done and benefit both countries.
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Oct 21, 2015 10:33am
@Madhu The southern grid is not adequately connected to the central grid. Major investments are being made to improve distribution capacity in Infia.
One more point is weak finances of state electricity boards which does not allow them to pay for this electricity. These areas are being reformed and hopefully such anomalies as Punjab having surplus power while south has load shedding will disappear.
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Oct 21, 2015 10:44am
First of all India should recover their own Power crisis..in my Village there are 2 to 4 hrs Load shedding everyday..My half day is so boring when I go there for Holidays..
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Oct 21, 2015 10:49am
Very strange!! I can see that there is huge power issue in Bangalore since last 2-3 days and Indian government has surplus electricity for selling.
Everyone wants money whether it is government or public!!
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Oct 21, 2015 10:50am
@Madhu : I can see that last 2-3 days hge powercut in Bangalore and this news surprized me!!
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Oct 21, 2015 10:52am
According to this news report, AEL has submitted some docs to the ministry. I suppose then that this is stuck there rather than with India
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Oct 21, 2015 10:57am
I read DAWN, and imagine most of the comments that come across are from India, there ppl in India who have positive feedback & concerns, and Indians too want peace and normal relations in every walk of life. Who ever is doing what is happening in India is not the real India. Indian ppl are loving and understanding, I have been there and seen and witnessed.
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Oct 21, 2015 10:59am
i dont get it, at one side, we are on verge of nuclear war and now this kind of co-operation. This subcontinent is crazy. Bunch of emotional people
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Oct 21, 2015 11:06am
@Madhu Because the 5 Indian grids are not unified and cannot transfer power from one to another.
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Oct 21, 2015 11:13am
stalled? its should be cancelled !!
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Oct 21, 2015 11:14am
@Omkar "Yet despite all this, nearly 400 million Indians have no access to electricity. Although India has less than a fifth of the world's population, it has close to 40 percent of the world's population without access to electricity."
Read more at: http://phys.org/news/2013-11-rural-india-electricity.html#jCp
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Oct 21, 2015 11:25am
india has indirectly said no as it is committed to its own states as election is near
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Oct 21, 2015 11:29am
We should import power from European Union.
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Oct 21, 2015 11:36am
@east punjabi I am from Lahore and living at Islamabad (forefather from Gurdaspur) whenever I go my native home (Lahore) I see new roads, buildings, new infrastructure projects i.e., major development. We see such change in other cities too in Pakistan. For this energy demand is increasing day by day and for such Pakistan welcome import of surplus electricity from Indian Punjab but so far unfortunate due to extremist elements in India. We hope day will come for mutual business on win / win basis.
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Oct 21, 2015 11:36am
OK ... the day Pakistan start importing 4000 MW electricity, Agree to start Nankana Sahib-Amritsar, Rawalakot-Poonch Bus services, Take forward steps to liberalize visa for Indian travelers/ senior citizens to visit to religious shrines and for tourism, enter into structured periodic cultural exchange programs and grant India MFN status for bilateral trade .... Every Indian assure Pakistan that relations will improve ... :-))
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Oct 21, 2015 11:40am
its a premature statement .......long way to go.
raghu
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Oct 21, 2015 11:47am
The people of Pakistan and India should ignore the politicians and religious bigots from both the sides. Politicians and so called religious leaders thrive whatever may be the situation but it is the common people who benefit from peace. People from Pakistan and India should start a movement to normalise the relations. Recommend if you agree
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Oct 21, 2015 11:48am
@Omkar Huge difference between the installed capacity and actual production. Read other Indians comments here. Indian Punjab and Gujarat has surplus power production capacity but there are no takers as there is no distribution network, no buyers, so Adani power will not produce to, say the full capacity and working probably at 50% capacity. There is no electricity for about 400 million Indians.
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Oct 21, 2015 11:58am
We had plans to import power from a power deficient country??? Now thats funny
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Oct 21, 2015 11:59am
@Omkar yet there are so many places in India without electricity
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Oct 21, 2015 12:03pm
India is power deficient country. India should not have any relationship with Pakistan as it is not serving any purpose .
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Oct 21, 2015 12:06pm
Apart from Bombay the whole of Bharat suffers from load-shedding power cuts.
Rural areas go without electricity for more than 12 hours.
And we were supposed to import electricity from them?
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Oct 21, 2015 12:19pm
Will the Power & Water Minster explain how they are going to import the electricity from all the listed countries. I don't think that Pakistan has grid connection to any of these countries. Has he worked out the feasibility study for having the transmission line to the border of these countries?
Pakistan has not even started the construction gas line from Pakistan to Iran border? Where as Iran has practically completed the pipe line to Iran/Pakistan border.
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Oct 21, 2015 12:19pm
I believe Trade relations, Sports, mutual visits by artists from both countries should not be politicised. I am sure both countries could consider this comparatively simple matter in positive manner.
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Oct 21, 2015 12:24pm
There is Iran in the West, CARs up north.
And Pakistan itself has alot of potential to generate its own power.
So lets work on that.
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Oct 21, 2015 12:26pm
there are already the demand of electricity in India...to import electricity form India, is in more interest in pakistan rather than India...India itself now can not become the electricity surplus state....
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Oct 21, 2015 12:29pm
It is a prudent decision to withdraw such plans, we should never contemplate and construe such plan that shall shift the strategic control in the hands of India. Late arrival but right arrival!!!
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Oct 21, 2015 12:56pm
Why would you import electricity when projects are underway to add an additional 10800 MW in the system in 2017 and an other 8000 MW in the following years.
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Oct 21, 2015 01:04pm
Power crisis is being tackled with short cuts. We need a long term strategy with more hydral and nuclear power projects.
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Oct 21, 2015 01:15pm
The deal will go ahead if there is the usual kick back deal for the greedy Pakistanis government officials. Not sure what happens on the Indian side.
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Oct 21, 2015 01:40pm
@Pune-India That is because of subsidies , there no shortage in Punjab , in fact we are surplus , but areas where it prone to theft or lower tariffs they would never get 24 hrs power
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Oct 21, 2015 01:43pm
@Reza not correct ! in National grid power is surplus , rural / poor areas dont get 24 hours cause of subsidy , government doesn't want to loose money, Example Punjab has free power for farmers ( but thats limited for 4 hours ) in planation season , One cannot have subsidised power for 24 hours
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Oct 21, 2015 01:59pm
Totally pathetic government decision, wasn't anyone else left to be asked to fill the shortage of power?
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Oct 21, 2015 02:11pm
We should put ego aside. No harm in using electricity from India or any country if it is going to be a help in improving lives of PAKISTANI citizens? How does it make sense to ignore our own people's needs just for ego??
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Oct 21, 2015 02:14pm
After reading the news I extremely felt sorry for the nation being ruled by people either having vested interest or completely ignorant of the harsh ground realities. The ruling junta wants to trade with India even at the cost of Pakistan’s sovereignty. The rulers take refuge behind ‘threat of sanctions’ if they deal with Iran. However, the news itself say that a certain volume of electricity is being supplied by Iran, if it is true, there seems no threat in increasing the quantum. One has no option but to believe in the ‘conspiracy theory’ that Pakistan is not trading with Iran due to pressure of Saudi Arabia, not because of any threat of imposition of sanctions by the US. Only those at the helm of affairs can let the nation know the truth, noting but truth.
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Oct 21, 2015 02:15pm
@cmh Get it from the US at discounted rates!
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Oct 21, 2015 02:16pm
@Indian Its not how it looks like. India has 5 power grids 1) North 2) West 3) East 4) North east and 5) South grid. Right now North and North-East grid has surplus power where as western grid has on par power. Only Eastern and Souther grids has under power issue that is the reason government is pushing for 15 to 20 Nuclear Power Plants to overcome future need. Transferring power from Western grid to southern grid is still easy but it is too expensive for Northern Grid to provide power to southern grid.
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Oct 21, 2015 02:43pm
@east punjabi Last time I went to Delhi and U.P I experienced power cuts. Pakistan also has enough generation capacity, shortfall occurs because PSO does not supply enough fuel to power generators, many of whom are generating power at less than 50% capacity
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Oct 21, 2015 03:01pm
in india, govt started subsidizing all farmers to install solr energy panels for their water needs in the farms... soon, farmers dont have to be dependent on electricity for thier farming needs.. pkistan shoud, do that too..
why pakistan isnt asking china for electricity?
india is gorwing leaps and bounds nd is in severe shortage of power.
we all shoud, follow Genermany in generating clean energy from solar rather than water or thermal generated electricity... thats only the answer
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Oct 21, 2015 03:09pm
@Q Adil It is not ego, it is quality. Pakistanis should shun this begging attitude and develop their own energy resources, quality wise Pakistanis are better than many in many matters, only if they are willing to commit effort to it.
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Oct 21, 2015 03:10pm
@Q Adil Just judge from the substandard agricultural products they are importing from Pakistan or are you totally unaware of it too? We have one of the best agricultural irrigation system yet we have to import third class vegetables from India
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Oct 21, 2015 03:11pm
@Altaf outsourcing the govt!! Thats a new perspective to the whole problem of bad governance. India and Pakistan should both take your advise and experiment with this concept. Great thinking.
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Oct 21, 2015 03:11pm
Pakistan is generating enough power to carter for its needs. Problem is the distribution. Which require thorough planning and sound implementation, the skills with these PML(N) ministers utterly lack. Nandipur is one such example. Those who are talking about importing power from India, needs to get their head checked.
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Oct 21, 2015 03:14pm
@indian muslim Excellent idea...take more with you.
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Oct 21, 2015 03:24pm
@indian muslim please proceed as early as possible
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Oct 21, 2015 03:28pm
Barring some extremist we love Pakistani people, cricketer, cultural people , some bad incidents should not come between trade or business
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Oct 21, 2015 04:26pm
You guys need to stand on your feet thats the only good solution 0.0941$ is very high.
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Oct 21, 2015 04:46pm
Whats wrong with our government, instead of importing electricity from India it is better to better to have load shedding.
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Oct 21, 2015 05:00pm
@Madhu , The problem is due to limited capacity of transmission lines. Govt, is working on it. South India will have all required power. The aim is to make "air conditioned" India.
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Oct 21, 2015 05:29pm
It is a silly plan. Energy is security, why are you planning on importing electricity from all your neighbors, especially an enemy country like india. It is a very unstable region and supply can be cut off at any time. If you must, Iran is the only sensible option, as it is stable and we have friendly relations.
Countries go to war to protect their energy supplies and yet we are doing everything to place our energy security in others control.
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Oct 21, 2015 06:01pm
India and pak should be like either North Korea and South Korea or like us and Cuba together but no business with each other people from both sides able to take asylum in other country but never allowed to trade with each other
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Oct 21, 2015 06:03pm
People from both countries want peace with each other is the biggest joke of 21 century.
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Oct 21, 2015 06:38pm
Trade is not a bad thing. It is a powerful tool to curb extremism.
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Oct 21, 2015 06:43pm
@A common pakistani
On what basis you're claiming our Agro products are substandard ?
As for your remarks which says ' Third class Vegetables ' then don't buy them , eat grass.
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Oct 21, 2015 07:07pm
seriously gov of Pakistan, Deal with india???
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Oct 21, 2015 07:53pm
@indian muslim Which Bangalore you are talking about? I have been coming to Bangalore at least once or twice a year for the past several years and I have not experienced power cuts to the extent you said. Anyway, you are most welcome to settle in our country.
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Oct 21, 2015 08:37pm
India generated excess electricity this year as well. What's wrong if India gives to Pakistan? Cheap electricity will be a Booster for industries. Once again Pakistan keeps K word above business.
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Oct 21, 2015 08:59pm
@indian dalit You are wrong. Reasonable capacity to generate enough power is created (around 97.7% of the requirement : Ref http://powermin.nic.in/power-sector-glance-all-india) but transmission network is the bottleneck which has resulted in power cut in number of places. Of course the State Electricity Boards are bankrupt and unable to pay for the power. They are made to become bankrupt by the corrupt politicians who offer free power and subsidized power to many without bothering to finance the same . There are some states which are exceptions like Gujarat where freebies are not offered where even peak hour deficit is less than 2% .
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Oct 21, 2015 09:24pm
Thanks to India, Pakistan should see its own hydel resources like Kalabagh dam etc. instead of going for imported elecy. In 1980 India put a ban on import on a very large scale, led India to have flourished Industry. The present atmosphere created by Indian administration shall not allow Pakistan to be comfortable in any sector. Inevitably Pakistan should reshuffle its policy keeping its own character historically maintained.
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Oct 22, 2015 09:32am
@S. Anis @ its cost nothing to give political statements and fool the nation.
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Oct 22, 2015 06:18pm
Yes it is difficult to buy electricity that you need from India while simultaneously denying Indian goods land route to Afghanistan. Economics is greater than politics. Play fair or go home.
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Oct 22, 2015 07:59pm
The app allowed to turn power on or off when he wanted.
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Oct 22, 2015 10:38pm
@Madhu does it occur to u that Punjab can be surplus in power..don't be a frog of well..
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Oct 22, 2015 10:54pm
Pakistan was interested power from India as it was cheaper compared to other sources. India won't be a loser as we are setting up more Make in India industrial zones in the same belt to support our infrastructure.
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Oct 22, 2015 10:57pm
@Pune-India - why don't you buy our Inverters.
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Oct 22, 2015 11:48pm
Pakistan can have all the energy of the world, even then Pakistanis will be deprived of basic needs. Many civilians will refuse to perform their civic duty and our politicians would sit in their comfy castles and laugh as they snag and launder money to their foreign banks. I am not against for trading with India, but our current domestic policies and VIP culture has ruined everything. If we can finish this VIP culture strengthen our justice system, as well as law and order system, we will become a prosperous nation. But I doubt it will happen because our leaders are busy in making and securing riches of this while they enjoy their limited life..
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Oct 22, 2015 11:51pm
@Nadeem Ahmed even if we build all these things and even if we are able to harness the powers from the cosmos we will still be deprived of basic necessities because our leaders are such charismatic, and possess the qualities of saints. Shrek and his minions are trying run the government as a business and instead utilizing the countries resources they are simply selling them to the highest bidder.
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Oct 23, 2015 01:19am
What happened to the decade old plans to import electricity from Tajikistan and Iran ? What about the gas pipelines from Iran and Turkemenistan ? These insidious politicians only see commissions, bribes and corruption and long term interests of Pakistan.
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Oct 23, 2015 08:52am
All games. I think when Modi visits Pak in Jan, it will be shown as a grand gesture of him to export power to Pak
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Oct 23, 2015 10:28am
Electric power is a commodity, buy it who ever sells it to you at a resonable price. The prevailing logic by establishment is that this will help Indian economy but my God this will also help energy starved Pakistan's economy and will help its factories to start producing goods and hire more people.
It is exactly this kind of foolish thinking that is keeping Pakistan backward.
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Oct 23, 2015 11:56am
West Bengal has no power shortage. We are selling electricity to Bangladesh!
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Oct 23, 2015 12:05pm
@aslam shaikh this is the app made for Modi to control electricity supply.
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Oct 23, 2015 01:16pm
India itself is facing shortage. I think the geography & natural resources of Pakistan have the potential to produce enough energy.
Pak can become energy surplus country. Can export it.
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Oct 23, 2015 06:06pm
Pakistan has to start thinking about long term solution of this power shortage. The sector itself needs an overhaul, the failure to import especially from India is not what suggests backwardness, it is the unwillingness to harness ones' own resources to provide a long term solution to the problem, and that too on political parties' egotistical reasons. One thing is sure, as long as self-interest and hypocrisy is there in decision makers, and single mindedness to solve the problem doesn't come, Pakistan will remain as backward as it is because it is peoples' manmade fault.
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Oct 23, 2015 06:08pm
Some short sighted people have failed to realize that power is a strategic asset. Time to broaden your thinking spectrum
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Oct 23, 2015 08:27pm
@Shahid
Like Nandipur???
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Oct 23, 2015 08:32pm
If you can develop "nuclear power" why not do the same with "electric power"?
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Oct 23, 2015 09:10pm
@Nadeem Ahmed absolutely right, and we glorify our nuclear weapons. If we really had nuclear know how we would have set up nuclear power plants by now, and not gone begging to India for power
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Oct 23, 2015 10:10pm
@SS India - India has excess power. India is not facing any shortage. Sometimes, in the national power exchange, the power is traded at 1 rupee or almost free. But, weakest link is State government owned distribution companies. They have not changed though time has changed. Modi has come up with a roadmap to fix State government owned power distribution companies and every one in India to have 24x7x365 power as in Gujrath by 2022. Also, SAARC countries signed agreement to trade power between themselves. Please see this article - http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/Curious-case-of-surplus-power-but-lack-of-buyers/articleshow/47227137.cms
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Oct 23, 2015 10:31pm
@east punjabi What? Send some power to other states, I can tell you that there is not enough power in Maharastra & Rajasthan
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Oct 23, 2015 10:35pm
@Ali So True.
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