It is said that Grand Coulee Dam won the World War II because it made possible the manufacture of hundreds of war planes due to aluminum made by cheap electricity produced by the dam that resulted in bombing of German cities. As America joined the war effort the tide was turned in favour of Allied Forces. The history records that Alexander had said: “I came, I saw and I conquered”. When President Roosevelt of America went to inaugurate the Grand Coulee Dam, he said, “I came, I saw and I was conquered.” The majesty of a mega hydro-electric dam is such that no ruler can miss it when the full force of gushing water is let down from the dam. It is a sight to behold.
When Tarbela dam was commissioned delegates from all over the world came to witness its inauguration. When would our rulers realise the importance of a megadam not only for water storage but also for generation of cheap affordable power. Our rulers always promised to end load shedding of power but never mention the cost per unit of electricity to be generated by means of coal and other alternative means other than hydel to befool the people to remain ignorant of the price to be paid for power generation that is always kept secret so that people may not know the real price of power generation that may not be affordable by the masses.
DR MUHAMMAD YAQOOB BHATTI
Lahore