The Sindh government has started examining various aspects of formation of Thar Coal Authority (TCA), as its composition is highly tilted to centre on the development of Thar coal - a mineral resource that is purely a provincial subject under the Constitution.
Sources told Business Recorder on Thursday that Sindh had not conveyed its position on newly formed body to the Federal government, which was must for formally functionalising the TCA, established by the Cabinet Division last week. The TCA replaced Sindh Coal Authority (SCA), which was working under the Sindh government, the sources added.
The Federal government wanted the Sindh government to move quickly on TCA as the country is in dire need to develop coal reserve in Thar for power generation. "The country has been facing a power shortage, ranging between 4000 and 5000 MW for the last some months and if the development work on Thar coal reserves starts immediately, there would be no shortage of electricity," according to the sources.
Experts in the central government are of the view that Sindh authorities, including the SCA had failed to substantiate any plan for the development of Thar coal. The SCA critically lacked expertise to attract local and foreign investment in Thar, a difficult area where the initial cost of doing business would be much higher as it lacks basic infrastructure.
The failure provincial authorities prompted the central government to form another body that could go ahead in a reasonable timeframe for the development of Thar coal, the sources said. The first challenge the Pakistan Peoples Party government faced after it came into power was the shortage of power. In the 100 days agenda, the government also pledged to develop Thar coal for power generation and that was why it established the TCA.
There are some reservations on the composition of the TCA. The body will be headed Sindh Chief Minister or the nominee of provincial government, who will be picked up with the approval of Sindh Assembly. Apart from this, one Sindh minister will also be member of the body.
Other members of the body are those, who represent purely the Federal government. The Federal Minister for Water and Power is the vice-chairman of the body, while the Secretary, Water and Power and Deputy Chairman of Planning Commission are also the members of the body. Besides, the body will have Managing Director, who will also be member of the body.
The Managing Director is also likely to be appointed by the Federal government. The sources said that the real issue, which troubled Sindh authorities, was the SCA's abolition through a notification of the Cabinet Division. This was purely a provincial body and it could not be done away with without the consent of Sindh government, said the sources.