Kalabagh Dam still on govt agenda

Islamabad: Despite the Pakistan People’s Party’s claims that it has shelved the controversial Kalabagh Dam project, the National Assembly was informed that the dam was in the list of projects to be implemented to enhance the water storage capacity in the country.

“New large dams on the Indus, Swat and Kurram rivers namely Diamer-Basha, Akhori, Kalabagh, Munda and Kurram Tangi dams will be constructed in pursuance of the cabinet’s decision of January 17, 2006, to store an additional 23.5 Million Acre Feet (MAF) of water,” Minister for Water and Power Raja Pervez Ashraf told the National Assembly in a written reply to a question.

Vision-2025: The minister said the Water And Power Development Authority (WAPDA) has initiated the Vision-2025 programme for the development and efficient management of water and power resources. Under the programme, Mirani and Sabakzai dams in Balochistan were completed in the year 2006 and 2007 respectively.

He said the Gomal Zam and Satpara dams were being constructed to regulate the water flow especially in the monsoon season. He also said the Mangla Dam was being raised by 30 feet to store an additional 2.88 MAF.

Ashraf said the feasibility study of Akhori Dam project had been completed in November 2005. Detailed engineering studies would take 30 months and the construction would take five years, subject to the approval of PC-II for detailed engineering design and PC-I for construction of the project. He said an amount of Rs 286.857 million had been incurred on the preparation of the feasibility study of the project. He said the cost of construction of Akhori Dam was estimated at $ 4.4 billion in 2005. He said Rs 50 million had been allocated for the engineering studies of the project for the year 2008-09.

He said the construction of Diamer-Basha Dam was expected to commence in the year 2009. He said the anticipated total cost of the project was $12.6 billion. He said an allocation of Rs 920 million had been made in the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP), 2008-09 for construction of 23 small dams in NWFP, the Nai Gaj Dam in Sindh and Hingol, Naulong, Sukleji and Winder dams in Balochistan. He said the provincial governments were also undertaking small projects out of their own resources.

Ashraf claimed that around 250 megawatt of electricity had so far been saved by advancing the clock by one hour.

He assured the House that the duration of load shedding would be kept at the minimum-possible level during the holy month of Ramazan. He said, on the instructions of Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, there will be no load shedding during Iftar and Sehar.

To another question, he said no proposal to provide subsidy in electricity bills to the farmers in Balochistan was being considered.

NA Speaker Dr Fehmida Mirza criticised the minister on an occasion, noticing that replies to many of the questions pertaining to his ministry had not been received. She deplored that answers to the questions that had been deferred previously were still not available.

These included queries about the time by which load shedding would be totally eliminated, the quantum of electricity supply at present, the steps being taken by the government in the wake of the commencement of construction of Kishan Ganga Dam by India to divert River Neelum and the time by which the Goleen Gol Hydel Power Project would become functional.

Information Minister Sherry Rehman informed the House that two draft bills had been introduced in the National Assembly to withdraw the amendments made in the PEMRA law on November 3 last year, NNI reported.

She said the ministry is now framing legislative proposals to transform PEMRA from a regulator to a facilitator to enable the media perform its role with freedom, dignity and professionalism.