Diamer Basha Dam Delays Spike Costs to Rs. 1,400 Billion: Ahsan Iqbal, the Federal Minister for Planning, Development, and Special Initiatives of Pakistan, also held a review meeting on the current situation of Diamer Basha Dam, which will be crucial for the water and energy sector in Pakistan. It took place on Friday, involving minutes, three main planning officers, mainly the Secretary of Planning and the Chairman of WAPDA, along with other planning officers and high-ranking officers from the other departments.
Diamer Basha Dam: National Benefit’s Important Project
On the need to construct the Diamer Basha Dam, Ahsan Iqbal was adamant, saying it would be for the future of Pakistan and would enable the government to control the much-needed water resource, control floods, and help feed the country by consoling water. He said the project has become a necessity for the protection of the country’s agriculture and industrial growth. Piracy can also have the possibility of a copied tune holding 6.4 million acres of water. The Diamer Bhasha Dam is expected to revolutionise water resources in Pakistan.
Hurdles in Project Progress
However, over the years, this project has been experiencing some setbacks that include time overruns and poor management of funds. When the project was proposed in 2018, earlier it was estimated to cost about Rs. 479 billion, out of which Rs. 120 billion has been sanctioned for the land acquisition. But due to the inefficiency of the previous government, the cost has risen to Rs. 1,400 billion.
Ahsan Iqbal expressed his concerns that the project was started in 2020 without appropriate financing, due to which the costs escalated. During the meeting in the previous government’s term, figures between Rs. 600 billion and Rs. 750 billion were discussed, while in black and white an estimate of Rs. 480 billion was being provided.
Separation of Dam and Power Projects
In a bid to overcome the continued problem of funding, the planning minister suggested that the dam project be unbundled from the power generation project. He proposed using private sector funding for the power part, which may reduce the pressure on the authorities financially.
Discontent over PC-1 & Future Proposals
Ahsan Iqbal also focused on another important problem, which is the lack of up-to-date PC-1 (Project Concept-1) in Pakistan. Six years have passed but an updated PC-1 has not been developed for the Diamer Basha Dam. He emphasized not starting any project without a balanced PC-1, especially if it is more than two years old.
In his concluding remarks, Ahsan Iqbal also supported PPP model to avoid such funding impediments in future. Under this model, private investments would have a huge role to play in ensuring that time-bound delivery of key projects such as the Diamer Basha Dam is achieved.
Involvement of Pakistani Students
Ahsan Iqbal said that he wants engineering and hydrology students from different universities of the country to work on Diamer Basha Dam. He assumes that such hands-on experience will enable students to derive benefits from their participation in any such large-scale national program.
Urgency for Completion
The Federal Minister stressed upon all the departments that no stone should be left unturned in achieving the project of Diamer Basha Dam. He emphasized on the point that any further he said could pose a threat to the water and food security of Pakistan, which is not possible.
Lesco Begins Recovery Process from Government Defaulters
In Lahore, the Lahore Electric Supply Company (Lesco) is also further struggling in its process of deferred recovery from the institutions. Currently the chief executive officer of Lesco is engineer Shahid Haider, who has broadened the aspect of recovery in which special attention has been paid to the government departments who are in arrears of Rs. 14.334 billion in unpaid balances, arrears, or overdue payments.
A Lesco spokesperson disclosed that recovery from the private sector has been in progress for the last 346 days, but the focus has still been on the public sector defaulters like TMAs, WASA Lahore, etc.
Some of the key defaulters include:
- TMAs: Rs. 5.999 billion
- WASA Lahore: Rs. 4.1 billion
- Punjab Irrigation and Power Department: Rs. 636 million
The Lesco CEO has directed its officers to recover money from these government entities and has encouraged the officers to do whatever they can to get the money.
FAQs
Q1: What is the Diamer Basha Dam?
A1: Hence, the Diamer Basha Dam is a strategic infrastructure that seeks to address the challenge of water storage with a targeted capacity of 6. 4 million acre-feet of water for Pakistan’s agriculture and industry.
Q2: What has led to the cost of the Diamer Basha Dam to increase?
A2: The cost for the project has gone up because of the previous delays, mismanagement, and appropriate internal funding that was not provided under the previous government.
Q3: What will the Diamer Basha Dam bring to Pakistan?
A3: Overall, the dam will supply water for agricultural and industrial use, which is so important in fulfilling the food and water security of Pakistan.
Q4: How is Lesco ensuring it recovers dues from defaulters?
A4: Lesco is now targeting government departments that owe large sums of money in unpaid electricity bills in its new aggressive recovery drive.
Q5: What opportunities are there for students to be involved in the Diamer Basha Dam project?
A5: They might be used as construction interns where Pakistani engineering and hydrology students engage in construction for learning purposes.
