HISTORY OF ENERGY CRISIS FROM 1947 TO 2010

THE dimensions and ramifications of the ongoing energy crisis in Pakistan are numerous
and atrocious. Taxpaying citizens are facing up to 20 hours of load shedding, a situation
they could have never imagined.

Official reports acknowledge that over 400,000 industrial workers have lost their jobs and
the country’s industries are facing an annual monetary loss of over Rs240bn — and this
is just a brief view of the catastrophic socio-economic implications of the issue. Even
more alarming is the fact that the phenomenon of load shedding appears to be beyond
arrest even in a couple of years. Violent demonstrations because of load shedding have
been taking place across the country since 2006. The current surge in the problem is a
clear indication of the dismal scenarios that can unfurl in the future if meaningful
measures are not adopted to bring about a reasonable level of relief.

It is time for policymakers to come to terms with reality: they have to realize that their
traditional tactic of beating about the bush by emphasizing non-issues while ignoring the
real problems is no longer an option. If they continue to do this, matters may rapidly
spiral out of control, resulting in deep chaos and causing irreparable damage on many
fronts.

The first and by far the most important step towards addressing the existing energy crisis
is the identification of its root causes. The correct solution cannot be formulated unless
the factors that created the problem are identified. Any sincere attempt to examine the
anatomy of the energy crisis would reveal that it has not emerged overnight. In fact, it
was fostered by bankrupt policies followed by various regimes over the last three decades
— although the greatest responsibility rests on the shoulders of the Musharraf
dispensation. The energy crisis is a self-inflicted problem that has been allowed to reach
stor my proportions even though the country lacked neither energy resources nor the
opportunities to exploit them meaningfully.

Amongst the greatest tragedies the sector has suffered were the lack of vision and the
unwillingness to shoulder responsibility of governments and political leaderships. An
examination of the country’s energy history shows that other than the regimes of the ’60s
and ’70s, none did justice to this important sector. The track record of governments over
the past three decades has by and large been disappointing since they tended to rely on
makeshift arrangements instead of working on long-term, goal-oriented projects.

Even in the few cases where farsighted policies were formulated, the resolve to ensure
their implementation was simply not in evidence. Other major factors contributing to the
downfall of the energy sector include the pursuance of personal and political interests,
political interference in energy departments, financial and administrative irregularities,
corruption and nepotism. All the dimensions of the existing energy crisis, such as severe
levels of load shedding, unaffordable electricity and gas prices and dependence on
foreign energy supplies, are the direct consequences of these malpractices.
Although the country experienced over 100 per cent growth in terms of installed capacity
over the last two decades, it has not been smooth sailing. Hardly any value-engineered
projects were developed over this period. Other than the 1450MW Ghazi Barotha project
and a couple of nuclear power plants, there is not much to be satisfied about.

Meanwhile, the list of blunders in terms of the dumping of essential projects and the
orchestration of unviable and counterproductive projects is very long. The independent
power producers’ (IPPs) Programme of the 1990s, for example, could have been quite
beneficial but ultimately turned out to be counterproductive due to issues such as the lack
of transparency, excess-generation capacity, high-tariff structures and unviable power-
generation technologies. Interestingly the World Bank, one of the key players in the IPPs
Programme, has also acknowledged the existence of issues such as the lack of
transparency, political influence in the award of contracts and excess generation capacity.
Therefore, although the IPPs brought one of the few periods of electricity prosperity, they
ended up with grave economic implications for the Water and Power Development
Authority (Wapda) and the country.

Some of the other crucial setbacks inflicted on the energy sector during this period
include the dumping of Wada’s power development Programme in the 1980s, the binning
of the State Engineering Corporation’s plan to indigenize power plants in the 1990s,
barring Wapda from thermal power generation in the 1990s, the persistent shelving of the
Kalabagh dam project, the failure to institute large new hydropower projects and growing
reliance on thermal power. This sequence of irrational and absurd decision-making, either
by incompetence or by design, gradually put the energy sector in trouble.

Ironically, even in the midst of a devastating energy crisis, the same mistakes are being
repeated: evidence of this is the rental power Programme that is now actively being
pursued. This, once again, is an attempt to divert attention from the real issues and to
pursue other agendas.

The country’s policymakers must learn from their mistakes before it is too late. As the
starting point of any meaningful measure leading to a resolution of Pakistan’s energy
problems, they have to put an end to malpractices in the system. Weaknesses and
inefficiencies have to be checked instead of wasting time and resources in buying
unviable solutions. It is time national interests were put before petty personal and
political interests, for the change needs to go beyond mere rhetoric.

Globalisation and the Human Empire

Globalisation is an ongoing process by which mainly regional economies, societies, and cultures
have become integrated through a globe-spanning network of communication and execution.
Sometimes the term is used to refer specifically to economic globalisation: the integration of
national economies into the international economy through Trade, Foreign Direct Investment,
Capital Flows, Migration and the spread of Technology. However, it is usually being driven by a
combination of economic, technological, socio-cultural, political, and biological factors.
History of Globalisation

The historical origins of globalisation are the subject of on-going debate. Though some scholars
situate the origins of globalisation in the modern era, others regard it as a phenomenon with a
long history.

Perhaps the most extreme proponent of a deep historical origin for globalisation was Andre
Gunder Frank, an economist associated with dependency theory. Frank argued that a form of
globalisation has been in existence since the rise of trade links between Sumer and the Indus
Valley Civilisation. Critics of this idea point out that it rests upon an overly-broad definition of
globalisation.

Modern globalisation

In the middle decades of the twentieth century globalisation was largely driven by the global
expansion in the United States & Europe, and worldwide exchange of new developments in
science & technology, and export of western culture through the new mass media: film, radio,
television and music recorder. Development and growth of international transport and
telecommunication played a decisive role in modern globalisation.

The spread of globalisation slowed down during the period from the start of the World War I until
the third quarter of the twentieth century. However, the pace picked up rapidly during the fourth
quarter of the twentieth century. In World War II, which is largely the result of planning by
politicians to break down borders hampering trade to increase prosperity and interdependence
thereby decreasing the chance of future war. Their work led to an agreement to lay down the
framework for international commerce and finance, and the founding of several international
institutions intended to oversee the processes of globalisation. These institutions include the
International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank), and the International
Monetary Fund (IMF). Technology advancement has reduced the costs of trade, originally under
the auspices of the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade (GATT), which led to a series of
agreements to remove restrictions on free trade.

Globalisation Measure

Looking specifically at economic globalisation, demonstrates that it can be measured in different

ways. This center around the four main economic flows that characterise globalisation:

a) Goods and services, e.g., exports plus imports as a proportion of national income or per capita
of population

b) Labor /people, e.g., net migration rates; inward or outward migration flows, weighted by
population

c) Capital, e.g., inward or outward direct investment as a proportion of national income or per
head of population

d) Technology, e.g., international research & development flows using particular inventions
(especially 'factor-neutral' technological advances such as the telephone, motorcar, broadband)

Effects of globalisation

Globalisation has various aspects which affect the world in several different ways such as:
 • Economic/Financial - emergence of worldwide financial markets and better access to
external financing for borrowers. As these worldwide structures grew more quickly than
any transnational regulatory regime, the instability of the global financial infrastructure
dramatically increased, as evidenced by the financial crisis of 2007–2009.
• Industrial - emergence of worldwide production markets and broader access to a range of
foreign products for consumers and companies. International trade in manufactured
goods increased more than 100 times (from $95 billion to $12 trillion) in the 50 years
since 1955. China’s trade with Africa rose seven-fold during 2000-07 alone.
• Social - development of the system of non-governmental organisations as main agents of
global public policy, including humanitarian aid and developmental efforts.
• Political - some use "globalisation" to mean the creation of a world government which
regulates the relationships among governments and guarantees the rights arising from
social and economic globalisation. With the influence of globalisation and with the help of
The United States’ own economy, the People's Republic of China has experienced some
tremendous growth within the past decade.
• Cultural - Culture is defined as patterns of human activity. Culture is what people eat,
how they dress, beliefs they hold, and activities they practice. Globalisation has joined
different cultures and made it into something different. The internet breaks down cultural
boundaries across the world by enabling easy, near-instantaneous communication
between people anywhere in a variety of digital forms and media. Photo sharing websites
allow interaction even where language would otherwise be a barrier.
• Ecological - the advent of global environmental challenges that might be solved with
international cooperation, such as climate change, cross-boundary water and air
pollution, over-fishing of the ocean, and the spread of invasive species.
• Technical
o Development of a Global Information System, global telecommunications
infrastructure and greater transborder data flow, using technologies such as the
Internet, communication satellites, submarine, fiber optic cable, and wireless
telephones.
o Increase in the number of standards applied globally; e.g., copyright laws,
patents and world trade agreements.
• Legal/Ethical
o Emergence of the Global administrative law.
o Crime importation and raising awareness of global crime-fighting efforts and
cooperation.
o Creation of the international criminal court and international justice movements.
• Religious -The spread and increased interrelations of various religious groups, ideas, and
practices and their ideas of the meanings and values of particular spaces.
• Language - the most popular language is Mandarin (845 million speakers) followed by
Spanish (329 million speakers) and English (328 million speakers).
o About 35% of the world's mail, telexes, and cables are in English.
o Approximately 40% of the world's radio programs are in English.
o About 50% of all Internet traffic uses English.

Negative Effects

Globalisation has been one of the most hotly debated topics in international economics over the
past few years. It has also generated significant international opposition over concerns that it has
increased inequality and environmental degradation. It has also helped to spread some of the
deadliest infectious diseases known to humans such as HIV/AIDS. Opportunities in richer
countries drive talent away, leading to brain drains. Brain drain has cost the Indian students going
abroad for their higher studies a foreign exchange outflow of $10 billion annually. Since the
beginning of the Green Revolution the world population has grown by about 4 billion and it is
believed that, without the Revolution, there would be greater famine and malnutrition than the UN
presently documents (approximately 850 million people suffering from chronic malnutrition in
2005).

It is becoming increasingly difficult to maintain food security. Growing populations, falling energy
sources and food shortages will create the "perfect storm" by 2030. The world will have to
produce 70% more food by 2050 to feed a projected extra 2.3 billion people, the United Nations'
Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) warned.

In late 2000s, much of the industrialised world entered into a deep recession. Some analysts say
the world is going through a period of deglobalisation after years of increasing economic
integration. Up to 45% of global wealth had been destroyed by the global financial crisis in little
less than a year and a half.

Anti-Globalisation

The "anti-globalisation movement" is a term used to describe the political group who oppose the
NEOLIBERAL version of globalisation, while criticisms of globalisation are some of the reasons
used to justify this group's stance. It may also involve the process or actions taken by a state in
order to demonstrate its sovereignty and practice democratic decision-making. Anti-globalisation
may occur in order to maintain barriers to the international transfer of people, goods and beliefs,
particularly free market deregulation, encouraged by organisations such as the International
Monetary Fund or the World Trade Organization (WTO).

Globalisation in Indian contest

The process of globalisation has imposed certain inherent inequalities on a developing country
like India. A section of people in India has indeed stood to gain (the empire), but the vast majority
of the people are groping in the dark, deprived of economic prosperity and social justice. The
relentless hard work of nearly 80 million women in rural India is the secret of success of our White
Revolution – producing 80 million tonnes of milk. In the richest country like USA it involves a mere
2, 00,000 persons to produce over 70 million tonnes of milk. Today the national macro-economic
policies and global trade policies often threaten the very survival of micro-enterprises. The fast
expanding transnational supermarkets are threating the livelihood of small-scale traders and
vendors.

Critics of Globalisation

The critics of globalisation typically emphasize that globalisation is a process that is mediated
according to corporate interests, and typically raise the possibility of alternative global institutions
and policies, which they believe address the moral claims of poor and working classes throughout
the globe, as well as environmental concerns in a more equitable way.