QUETTA: In the early hours between Saturday and Sunday, nearly two dozen armed militants affiliated with the Balochistan Liberation Army (BLA) launched a violent attack on the 132 kV grid station located in the outskirts of Mastung, specifically in the Zard Ghulam Jan Mangocher area.
The assailants vandalized the control room, high-power transformers, and both AC/DC panels using firearms and metal rods.
On-site staff from the Quetta Electric Supply Company (QESCO) and two security guards were taken hostage. Their 12-bore rifle was seized, and they were forced to evacuate the building under death threats.
A few hours later, the attackers caused deliberate technical damage to the 132 kV Yaro Industrial Transmission Line near Kuchlak Bypass.
Security patrols and local officials later discovered that approximately 700 meters of conductors and other valuable components had been stolen.
Security analysts say that after recent crackdowns on cross-border diesel smuggling, drug trafficking, and foreign funding channels, the BLA has shifted towards extortion and theft of copper wiring and electric infrastructure as a new revenue stream.
QESCO has urged the public to immediately report any suspicious activity near transmission lines to the police or district authorities.
This is part of efforts to counter what officials describe as the BLA’s emerging “Copper Cartel” strategy.
The provincial government is now considering handing over the protection of grid stations to the Frontier Corps and police counterterrorism units.
On the federal level, attacks on critical infrastructure have been classified as “high-priority terror threats” under the National Action Plan.
Energy experts warn that if such incidents continue, they could severely impact industrial output during peak summer power shortages, causing billions in economic losses to the province.
However, local tribal leaders believe that community-based watch schemes, supported by security forces and civil administration, could significantly deter such criminal raids.
The BLA’s latest actions reveal a dangerous shift in Balochistan, where militancy is rapidly merging with organized crime.
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The real concern now is not which grid station may be targeted next—but how the state and society can jointly confront this growing threat on both security and economic fronts.
