Bullet train and power shortage
(Mohammad Abdullah, karachi)
THIS is apropos of the letter
‘Bullet train will be a dream come true’ (May 16). The letter postulates that
the Pakistan Railways has land assets in Karachi which can be exploited for
building skyscrapers and that could fund the dream train.
What is required is not only money but also electricity to run a bullet train
which may not run on a dream. Unless and until a mega hydroelectric dam is not
built to provide cheap power, a country plagued with 12 to 16 hours of
loadshedding, cannot dream of a bullet train. The only possibility for cheap
hydel power is the construction of the Kalabagh Ddam which can generate 3,600 MW
of cheap power.
The other alternative, the Diamir Bhasha Dam, is only a gleam in the eye due to
insurmountable problems of long distance from consumers and lack of funds by the
World Bank due to objections by India being located in a disputed area.
The first groundbreaking of the Bhasha Dam was done in 2006, i.e. seven years
ago, with no prospects of further tangible progress. Even funds for preliminary
works of the dam were diverted by Raja Pervez Ashraf to build roads in Gujjar
Khan. We would need another Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan to build a mega dam to provide
ample power for a dream train.
The Grand Coulee Dam in the US was built during World War II which helped to win
the war by generating cheap power that made it possible to make aluminum for
fighter and bomber planes that tilted the balance of war against Germany as did
the atom bomb against Japan. As such, first things first, we require a mega
hydroelectric dam in Pakistan before we dream of a bullet train. Even the first
electric train from Lahore to Khanewal could not be maintained due to lack of
power and the poles as the overhead power lines were also pilfered by thieves.
We may have grandiose ideas but in order to translate these into reality we need
to set priorities to do first things first instead of dreaming like Sheikh
Chilli who broke his eggs in a fitful dream.