By: Muneeb Maqsood Ahmed (Makkuran)
MAKKURAN is one of the divisions of Balochistan consisting of three districts in its south; Kech, Gwadar and Panjgur. It touches borders with Iran due to which Iran has been supplying electricity to this region under an agreement between Pakistan and Iran. However, in the recent times, electricity crisis has saddened the people of the region.
Although, Pakistan’s largest project [China Pakistan Economic Corridor] is hosted by the division, it has failed to attain governmental eye. One one side, China claims of multiple developments in Balochistan – particularly in Gwadar– and on the other, we witness people marching to roads in lack of the fundamental necessities of life.
To a greater misfortune, after this long of Pakistan’s existence in Balochistan, the Pakistani state has not taken measures to connect the electricity of Makkuran with national grid station. Like the state has kept afar Balochistan from the other schemes, the state has also ignored Balochistan in terms of providing power which has become a basic need in the given situations.
The agreement of supplying electricity to Makkuran was passed in September 2003 between Iran and Pakistan. The agreement reads that Iran would supply 35 megawatts of electricity to Makkuran per day. However, after 2013, the supply of megawatt of electricity was increased to 100 megawatts per day, but in the ongoing year (and prior to this) there has been a massive outrage of power in the concerned division.
In last month, public of Turbat, Gwadar and Panjgur turned to roads to demand for their basic right of electricity. In Turbat the public went riotous in the month of Ramazan when they broke the car of the concerned officer of electricity of the district and also blocked the route connecting district Kech with the neighboring districts and Karachi. Whereas, the people in Gwadar blocked the main routes as well for several days.
Disappointing for the local population, Chinese are foreigners who are given every facility within Gwadar, but when it comes to them, they vociferate for tiny needs in their own land. The government of Pakistan has always given more priority to others but when it comes to Baloch people, they keep themselves aside. Coming to the provincial government, they were never optimistic for demanding for the basic rights of the people, but of filling up their accounts.
Makkuran possesses a very hot temperature in summer. It averages more than 45 centigrade, sometimes crossing 50 centigrade. In such a hot weather, this bit of power crisis can cause death and suffrage for the people, specially for unhealthy people. Secondly, government has left a large part of Makkuran as unemployed who have began their private businesses which are mostly linked with electricity. In such a case, they gain more losses than benefits. The people of Makkuran want their fundamental right, not “spoken development project” as Southern Special Package. It is yet to observe what strategy will the government apply to curb power crisis in Makkuran.
Published in Daily Makran Times
Daily Makran Times 