@EX PAT Whatever happens in India is not my concern. I'm a Sri Lankan TAX PAYER who consistantly gets a REALLY BAD DEAL from the STATE!, which my next 10 generations will have to pay for, while kids of those who administered this DEAL will study at foreign universities, get jobs in foreign countries and bask in the sun at a beach resort(which anyway will be owned by them).

Ex Pat, you seem to be recommending that we behave like Indians! The Indian power grid is one of the worst in the world mostly due to the very poor quality of materials ( copper vs aluminium?)used in its construction and the same goes for most of India’s infrastructure. And if you think that back up generators are the answer to power failures then why not simply do away with the national grid once and for all as India may very well have to do very soon given her inability to control her population growth unlike Sri Lanka? The reason why Sri Lankans crib about power cuts is because –unlike in India-there are enough intelligent people in Sri Lanka who know how these kinds of breakdowns can be prevented and that is why they complain. The problem is that these intelligent Sri Lankans are in a minority and the majority, like you, seem to think that bungling along is the way to go. As for this talk of “Asian powerhouse” just lay off and allow Sri Lanka to develop as the capital market, and prime generator of human resources of the region it links, and see for yourself how it compares with that “Asian powerhouse” within just a few years. There are enough of us here who are aware that the instigation of the war and sundry other meddling has been solely to prevent the island from achieving its potential. Not all Sri Lankans are bungling idiots and those who are not see very clearly the game that is being played. We will never forget the role played by the “Asian powerhouse” in subverting democracy here and saddling us with a government that has shown itself to be a tragic joke.So get off your high horse and leave us alone to sort out the mess that is to a large extent a creation of this "Asian powerhouse".

While knowing the constant breakdown of the Coal power plant from inception and still printing it on 100 rupee notes, I only can guess is that govt. is more into propaganda stint than real benefit to public.What's the pride we have when 100% of this plant is foreign loan,foreign labor,foreign machinery with higher interest rates.Mind you India's population is 60 times more than Sri Lanka with fast industrialization and electricity projects are 100% locally funded and built.Shame CBSL.

Hanging people who took commissions will solve the problem???

Why do people i SL crib about power cuts , when the asian powerhouse it self is in darkness for a couple of days!!!! India’s electricity problems An area of darkness Giant electricity cuts cast half of India into darkness—and highlight its lousy infrastructure Aug 4th- 10th 2012, (The Economist) • The government carried out a cabinet reshuffle in the midst of the blackouts • National politicians and officials tried to evade responsibility. • Beyond the poverty of politics in India, three problems loom large:  The narrow fault that caused the blackouts  The wider crisis in India’s power sector  The shoddy state of the country’s infrastructure • some states used more than their quota of power from the national transmission network that links up India’s five regional grids • The extra demand may have reflected a disappointing monsoon that forced farmers to pump more water for their fields • The transmission network is not the only vulnerable part of the power supply chain, which is one giant bottleneck • Most large firms, and even India’s airports, have backup generators or their own mini-power stations. • Demand (for Electricity) is expected roughly to double over the next decade as manufacturing output expands and more Indians buy televisions, computers and fridges • Supply (of Electricity) chain is rotten. Not enough coal is being dug up by the state monopolist, Coal India. • Most local distribution firms are state-owned and all but bankrupt, as politicians insist that tariffs stay low and that big swathes of the population, including farmers, get free power. • Private-sector power plant firms are being squeezed by fuel shortages and by end-customers that are often financial zombies. • The industry starts cutting back on long-term investment in new plants • Despite these problems, the government has merely applied sticking plasters and tried to knock heads together. It has ducked fundamental reform, which would probably involve breaking up Coal India, privatizing local distribution companies and installing new regulators with teeth. Its reluctance to shake up the power market is coming back to haunt it. • Other parts of India’s infrastructure are in somewhat better shape. • The results can be seen from a new airport in Delhi and a metro system in Bangalore to the availability of a mobile-phone signal almost everywhere. • Yet without electricity, the life blood of an economy, some of these things will not work.

@2, Len Thriving economy! you must be day dreaming! Economy is kept afloat by indiscriminate foreign and local borrowings at commercial rates. To top, up taxpayer money is used to prop up state run businesses. If you are a direct beneficiary of spending of such borrowings/spending (politicians, contractors, middlemen etc) economy is thriving for you. This can't go on indefinitely. When the bust comes the rulers won't be around to pay back the loans to provide subsidies, build economically unviable projects and white elephants to satisfy the egos! People of this county will pay a high price for this illusionary ‘thriving economy’ via un-payable debt, inflation and EPF losses (retirement savings)

Legislator Harsha de Silva, representing the main opposition said the plant in Norochcholai on the west coast of Sri Lanka was used to depict "development and prosperity" of Sri Lanka in a currency note. Development and prosperity for those who collected the commissions on it i think and not sri lanka :-D

Is it possible the western crooks are responsible for constant brake down's at the power plant.Western nation are constantly conspiring to sabotage thriving SL economy.

People who took ncommissions to install with cheap Chinese equipment should be hung