BEKABAD

city, Tashkent oblast (province), eastern Uzbekistan. It lies along both banks of the Syr River at the extreme southern tip of the oblast. The town arose originally in connection with a cement plant and until World War II was known as a cement and cotton centre. During World War II a small steel plant was constructed in Bekabad. It uses scrap and some pig iron brought from Karaganda and Novokuznetsk to produce steel and rolled products. An important early source of power was the small Farkhad hydroelectric station completed in 1948 (126 megawatts), later augmented by hydroelectric and thermal power stations nearby at Shirin. Pop. (1991 est.) 82,800.