Jamaat declares Kalabagh dam ‘very dangerous’
Bureau Report — Updated Oct 16, 2015 10:21am
PESHAWAR: Declaring construction of Kalabagh dam ‘very dangerous’ for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Jamaat-i-Islami on Thursday asked Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif to categorically announce the abandoning of the controversial project.
On Wednesday, the Awami National Party had criticised the federal government, particularly Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, for ‘changing’ stand on Kalabagh dam and China-Pakistan Economic Corridor.
JI provincial chief Professor Mohammad Ibrahim told a news conference at the Al-Markaz-i-Islami here that the federal government should follow the decisions of All-Party Conference and build eastern route of the CPEC in first phase.
He said political forces in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa had serious reservations about Kalabagh dam and CPEC.
Professor Ibrahim said ‘hypocritical policies’ of the federal government would force the people of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan to protest.
He said the constitutional rights of all federating units should be protected otherwise it would harm the federation.
“The federal government will be responsible for the fallout of such policies,” he said, adding that recent statements of federal ministers Khawaja Asif and Ahsan Iqbal in favour of Kalabagh dam and CPEC eastern route were inappropriate.
Professor Ibrahim said technically, Kalabagh dam was not feasible and that policymakers should not forget devastating flash floods in 2010 that played havoc across KP, especially Peshawar valley.
He said major portion of Peshawar valley had submerged in floodwaters though Kalabagh dam didn’t exist.
The JI leader said the building of Kalabagh dam had nothing to do with floods and four districts, including Peshawar, Mardan, Nowshera and Swabi, would go under water if the controversial water reservoir was built.
He said the Kabul River and its affiliated tributaries could not sustain medium level floods.
“The prime minister should publicly announce abandoning the Kalabagh dam project,” he said while asking Nawaz Sharif to stop his ministers from issuing controversial statements on any national issue.
Professor Ibrahim said the federal government had pointed out loadshedding as the prime reason for construction of Kalabagh dam.
He said KP had potential to generate around 50,000MW hydel electricity and therefore, the federal government should cooperate with the provincial government.
The JI leader said several feasibility reports had been completed for hydel power generation.
He said currently, construction of two hydel generation projects was underway in Chitral and Kohistan.
Professor Ibrahim said like KP and Balochistan, construction of western route of the CPEC would also facilitate China and that feasibility study was also completed but policymakers were insisting on construction of the eastern route.
He said such policies generated disharmony and sense of deprivation among smaller units of the federation.
The JI leader said Islam, democracy and federation were three basic principles of the Constitution and that JI won’t allow any party or power to change them.
Published in Dawn, October 16th, 2015
Jamaat declares Kalabagh dam ‘very dangerous’ - Pakistan - DAWN.COM
Kalabagh Dam, six other water reservoirs being planned: Asif
ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Water and Power Khawaja Muhammad Asif told the Senate on Tuesday that seven water reservoir projects, including the controversial Kalabagh Dam, were under consideration.
In a written reply to a question by PML-N Senator Nuzhat Sadiq, the minister also said that the detailed design and tender documents of the Kalabagh Dam had been completed since 1988 and the implementation/ construction work on the project could be started once a decision was taken by the government. He pointed out that four water projects, including the Pelar Dam, Papin Dam, Winder Dam and Garuk Dam, were ready for implementation.
The minister noted that five projects were under implementation, namely Darawat dam, Nai Gaj Dam, Kurram Tangi Dam, Naulong Dam and Diamer Basha Dam.Asif conceded it was a fact that during the monsoon season, the unused quantum of water flowed to the sea because of water storage constraints and the average (1976-2015) quantum of water annually escaping to the sea was 29.30 million acre feet (MAF).
The minister revealed that Wapda had prepared a comprehensive plan to take water during the high flow season and utilise the same during the lean season for agriculture and the generation of electricity and then he referred to projects that included the Kalabagh Dam, Akhori Dam and Shyok Dam.
Responding to queries by the treasury and opposition senators on the Mina tragedy and its aftermath, Federal Minister for Religious Affairs Sardar Muhammad Yousaf said that according to the latest information, the death toll of Pakistani pilgrims had hit 99, whereas 70 of these had been identified and 45 wounded discharged while two were still under treatment there.
During his statement, the opposition senators walked out of the House to protest what they alleged the government’s apathy towards the Mina tragedy victims and their loved ones.The Senate Chairman, Mian Raza Rabbani, referred the matter to the Senate Committee on Religious Affairs for deliberations.
The minister claimed the media had not shared the facts with the nation, as they reported 500 Pakistanis missing whereas, initially, there were about 200, who were reportedly untraced.About identification and handing over the dead bodies, he said they had met the Saudi minister concerned who had issued directives but their system was extremely complicated.
He said some Pakistanis had been arrested by the Saudi authorities for illegally performing the pilgrimage. He said majority of the Hajis, who died there were usually buried there as per an agreement with the Saudi authorities.
About an investigation into the incident, the minister said they had no knowledge and awaited the outcome of the ongoing investigation being carried out by the Saudi government.The minister said that Haj arrangements were the responsibility of the Saudi government and also pointed out that the tragedy took place not at the site of stoning the Satan but at Road 204.
He said if there was any fault on the side of the Haj mission, he would take responsibility for that. He also referred to a statement by a Saudi prince that they would not allow any country to meddle in the probe into the Mina tragedy.
Earlier, other senators who raised questions, included Senators Saleh Shah from Fata, Sitara Ayaz and Shahi Syed of ANP, Farhatullah Babar of PPP, Usman Kakar and Sardar Azam of PkMAP and Kenneth Williams. Some of these senators alleged that the martyred pilgrims were buried with bulldozer.
One senator blamed a Saudi prince for the stampede while another demanded resignation of Sardar Yousaf. Rabbani wanted to know how Iran and India managed to take the bodies of their Hajis back home. On this, the minister said that they had no such agreement with Saudi Arabia, like the one Pakistan had.“If Saudi and Pakistan authorities fail to trace the missing pilgrims, should we forget them,” wondered the Senate chairman.
Donate or sell your land, Imran warns farmers
Proposed dams on Kabul River: Pakistan to suffer drop in water supply
ISLAMABAD, Nov 1: Experts at a conference on Tuesday said Pakistan would suffer 16 to 17 per cent drop in water supply from Afghanistan after construction of 13 dams on Kabul River.
They said time had come to enter into a water treaty with Afghanistan to avoid water related conflicts between the two countries.
They said with the active support of India many of these projects were in the implementation and designing phase.
The water conference entitled “Regional Water Governance: Facing Scarcity, Enhancing Cooperation” was organised by Leadership for Environment and Development (LEAD) Pakistan and was funded by French Embassy.
Federal Secretary of Water & Power Ashfaq Mahmood said it was the right time for Islamabad to sit with Kabul and form a water treaty otherwise it would be too late.
He said water insecurity was badly affecting the people and the economy. He underlined that Pakistans water per capita had fallen by 78.4 per cent since 1947 which means that Pakistan needed heavy investment in the water sector.
“Pakistan has made efforts to bring Afghanistan at negotiating table over water sharing but Kabul has always excused by saying that they are working to frame their own National Water Policy and it is not possible to initiate talks until that policy is completed,” Mr Ashfaq Mahmood said.
He also talked about the Indian cooperation with Afghan authorities over water, and said that the proposed 13 dams would adversely affect the Pakistans irrigation system.
“The crucial 16 to 17 per cent water supply from the Kabul River when Indus River sleeps during the winter will decline after these projects are completed,” he added.
International experts in the conference urged the need for a greater trust and science-based dialogues between the two inseparable states in order to understand and resolve water issues as well as explore feasible solutions.
Several suggestions were made during the conference such as to carry out a capacity audit of water related institutions. Indus River System Authority (IRSA) was mentioned as a negotiating forum in the conference and suggestion was made to have an IRSA like institution for Pakistan-Afghan water issues.
The conference was first of its kind in Pakistan as it focused on water cooperation between Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Speaking at the conference, former Wapda chairman Shamsul Mulk said, “We need to have people in Pakistan and Afghanistan who say 'this is our river, not your not mine'. He insisted that in the field of water “sub-optimality is not an option”.
LEAD Pakistan CEO Ali Tauqeer Sheikh said that water Treaty between Pakistan and Afghanistan was very necessary to avoid future conflicts.
Ali Tauqeer Sheikh further said that by initiating a dialogue on trans-boundary water issues, they have laid down foundations of effective governance mechanism and reminded the water community of the necessity to balance human needs and ecological protection.
“We need to develop a water security management plan and also we need to train the next generation of the water diplomats and leaders” he added.
Proposed dams on Kabul River: Pakistan to suffer drop in water supply - Newspaper - DAWN.COM
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