Directs to complete dam project till 2026 instead of 2029
ISLAMABAD
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has said that the completion of Diamer-Bhasha dam would serve as a future lifeline for the country’s economy, augmenting the power generation, besides boosting agriculture activities.
Speaking after a briefing over the construction of Diamer-Bhasha Dam in Diamer on Sunday, the prime minister said that the 4,500MW project is of immense importance for the country’s economy and stressed that it should be completed ahead of its construction timeline of the year 2029.
He urged the officers to go ahead of its timeline of 2029 and complete it by 2026-27. He said, “We can achieve it if we advance in unison.”
The prime minister said that it is a gigantic task and assured all-out support from the federal government to complete the project as early as possible. He also announced the construction of the 13km Babusar top tunnel to ensure year’s round traffic flow and asked the authorities to submit a study report to his office.
The prime minister said what happened during the last four years was unfortunate. He said early construction of the dam would be a good omen and a milestone in the country’s history. He regretted that out of 125-130 million acre feet of water, they are only saving and utilising 25-30MAF water annually.
The prime minister said the area lacked health facilities. He said he as chief minister of Punjab had donated a scanning machine for Gilgit.
He directed the authorities concerned to submit a report within a week for the construction of a fully equipped hospital in the area to provide the latest health facilities to the population of the area.
Earlier Chairman WAPDA Lt Gen (retd) Muzzamil Hussain briefed the prime minister over the ongoing project. The chairman WAPDA apprised that three mega hydel projects Diamer-Bhasha, Mohmand and Dasu dams, worth Rs2.6 trillion, are being completed.
The prime minister was accompanied by members of the National Assembly Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Khawaja Asif and Marriyum Aurangzeb.
After being briefed on the project by Chairman Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) Lt Gen Muzammil Hussain, the prime minister expressed satisfaction with the construction work.
He directed the chief secretary and chairman WAPDA to finalise the proposal of a 300-bed hospital within a week, adding that thousands of engineers, workers and technicians would need medical facilities in the time to come.
Later, the prime minister also took an aerial review of Karakoram Highway, 3MW Thuk power project and Chilas cadet college.
The multipurpose Diamer Bhasha dam is being built on the Indus River between Kohistan district in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province and Diamer district in Gilgit-Baltistan. After the Tarbela and Mangla projects, Diamer-Bhasha is the third multi-purpose dam project that Pakistan is working on. It will be used for water storage, flood mitigation, irrigation and power generation.
