SAHIWAL: A decade after the 1,320-megawatt Sahiwal Coal Power Plant was hailed as a beacon of progress, a new research report by Zahra Naeem and Hussain Asad in Dawn paints a harrowing picture of what locals call a “second 1947.” What was promised as a catalyst for prosperity in Punjab’s fertile heartland has instead become a symbol of environmental ruin and broken trust.
The Anatomy of Displacement
The report details a “calculated strategy” used during land acquisition in 2014. Authorities bypassed traditional family structures, issuing compensation checks to individual heirs and women to fracture collective resistance. Farmers like Muhammad Siddiq testify that they were forced to sell their ancestral lands at PKR 2 million per acre—far below market rates—only to be met with police raids if they resisted.
An Ecological and Health Crisis
The “fruit basket” of Punjab is withering under the weight of 3,000 kg of daily coal ash. The findings are staggering:
Water Depletion: Groundwater levels have plummeted from 68 feet to 172 feet, with 80% of residents reporting unusable water quality due to high arsenic and salt levels.
Public Health: Local medical camps report that 47% of patients now suffer from respiratory illnesses. Skin diseases and eye irritation have become common side effects of the unbearable air quality.
Agricultural Loss: Orchards of guava and plums are dying. Farmers claim the plant’s intense floodlights and pervasive ash have choked crop cycles and soil fertility.
Economic Mirage and Financial Burden
The promise of thousands of jobs has proven a “cruel deception.” Surveys indicate that only 50+ local positions were actually created, with most residents relegated to low-tier labor while senior roles went to outsiders.
Financially, the plant is now a “white elephant.” The utilization rate has dropped to 41%, yet the government remains burdened by massive capacity payments and outstanding coal bills totaling billions of rupees.
The Human Toll
The report highlights the transformation of daily life into a security-monitored ordeal. Residents must take 15 km detours due to coal-train priorities, while local railway stations remain closed to the public.
As elderly farmer Rana Ali Hasan poignantly states, “If development means destroying land and poisoning the air—then we do not want such development.” With 65% of locals now supporting the plant’s closure, the Sahiwal Coal Power Plant stands as a stark warning against development models that prioritize national energy metrics over the lives of local communities.
Courtesy: Dawn (Published Oct 26, 2025)