Minister for Energy Hammad Azhar has said that the economy is witnessing robust growth, expressing the confidence that it may be even higher than last year. In a tweet on Thursday, Hammad Azhar said that demand for high speed diesel has increased by 26 percent whilst petrol consumption has risen by 14 percent during the first quarter (July-September) of current fiscal year 2021-22. He said similarly, electricity consumption has risen by 13 percent during this calendar year. While quoting the above figures on his Twitter handle, Hammad said, “All signs of robust economic growth that may be even higher than last year’s.” Earlier on Wednesday, addressing the International Conference on Pakistan Hydropower Sector, the energy minister underscored the importance of hydroelectric power for the development of the country to end reliance on costly imported fuels and promote clean and green hydro energy, said Minister of Energy Hammad Azhar. “The government has declared this decade as the Decade of Dams,” he said. “The leadership is according top priority to building more dams to not only improve the share of hydropower in the energy mix, but also help secure more water for the agriculture sector.”