Economy
 
Energy crisis layoffs impact 15 million people in Punjab
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February 03, 2012
Amen Ahmed sitting at the bench of hotel listens to the rhetoric of political leaders who claim to the get country rid of chronic problems especially the energy crisis which has rendered him jobless for last couple of months. The announcement by the prime minister Syed YousufRazaGilani to end the worst ever gas crisis in six months troubles him more because such tall claims have never been materialized in the past, instead severity of crisis had intensified.

Amen Ahmed is not only the labourer who has lost his job because of the burgeoning gas crisis which has almost shutdown the industries of Pakistan’s once Manchester, Faisalabad. He is among the half million of labour force which has been rendered jobless in the last couple of months in the backdrop of increasing gas shortage in Faisalabad, which experienced gas suspension of more than 30 days. Though gas supply has been restored for the industries only for two days but it is failing to create any impact.

Directly or indirectly the energy crisis has hit around 15 million people in Punjab province alone but the government did not do anything to prevent huge lay offs. Experts are sure that the crime rate in the province will increase to a alarming level in near future which will lead to social disorder. When there is not work available in the industrial zones, which employs large number of work forces after agriculture, the situation hits hard the daily wagers but the current crisis has also impacted the salaried persons who now get paid only for the work they have done during the crisis.

The worries of Amen Ahmed are mounting with the passage of each day. He is looking for the ways to pay the house rent, school fees of children and food for his 5 children but apparently there is not clear answer to his quest. The government elected through his vote is totally indifferent because not step has been taken to protect his and millions of others livelihood. The State Bank of Pakistan has said that the inflation will increase in the current fiscal year to 12 percent which will multiply the miseries of Ahmed and people like him in the country in coming days.

The prolonged gas supply suspensions in Punjab is also giving sense of victimization of the people of the province. “Punjab is the part of Pakistan and whatever is being manufactured in this province carries the “made in Pakistan” label not the made in Punjab tag, says RehanNaseemBharara, Vice President of Faisalabad Chamber of Commerce and industry FCCI adding that “if there is gas shortage it should be shared by all provinces equally but only Punjab is targeted”. “The exports from the country are hit by the crisis due to wrong decision of the government. In past we would compete with India, China and Bangladesh but now were are competing with ourselves”, Bharara observed.

The textile sector alone has the potential to exports more than $20 billion worth of products but the energy crisis is suffocating the growth of this sector. In response to a question that if the industrialists were looking for alternates Bharara said that large number of industrial units were at the verge of default and in this situation costly conversion seems beyond question.

Pakistan’s central banks says that the country’s economy will not grow by 4.2 percent as its was anticipated mainly due to energy shortages. The SBP also pinpointed the fact that the government did not addressed the issue of energy crisis and instead introduced costly rental power projects which eventually proved flood gate of corruption in Pakistan.

The burgeoning corruption has infected pyramid of Pakistani society. From top to bottom the stories of money making through corrupt practices are now common things even hajis were not spared. Though the prime minister denies the allegation but the recent episode of khurramRasol has confirmed the existence of corruption. How it is possible that a man sitting next to the office of prime minister makes deals and PM did not get air of it? Amen Ahmed questions.

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