Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Sunday asked the authorities to expedite the work on Diamer Bhasha Dam project and have it completed by 2026 instead of its scheduled time of 2029.
The newly elected prime minister issued the instructions during his visit to the site to inspect the project’s pace of work and activities. He was accompanied by other PML-N leaders, including Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Marriyum Aurangzeb and Khawaja Asif.
Shehbaz Sharif was briefed by Water and Power Development Authority Chairman Lt-Gen Muzammil Hussain. He was informed of the issues resolved after efforts made by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit Baltistan administrations.
In his address to the project staff and Wapda officials, PM Shehbaz credited his elder sibling and former premier Nawaz Sharif for “launching the project in 2016”.
“Some of the problems were resolved by the Wapda chairman and his team very speedily. I am sure that all of you are going to work as a team and make efforts for the biggest energy project and complete it as early as possible,” he said.
He said that he could understand that the terrain of the area was hard to work on and there were financial problems but he was glad to know that the project was able to raise funds from the international market.
The prime minister said power generation from the project, once it begins, would help the economy immensely along with fulfilling irrigation requirements and protecting the country from flash floods. He added it would make the country “prosperous and progressive”.
He appreciated Wapda, Chinese companies and the Frontier Works Organisation for their combined work on the project.
PM Shehbaz urged international investors to come forward and invest in the project so that its power generation could begin as soon as possible.
The premier said Dasu dam was also on its way towards completion and very soon it would be operational and help the country overcome its energy crises.
The prime minister also announced the construction of a 13-kilometre long tunnel at Babusar Top.
Additionally, the premier asked the chief secretary and Wapda chairman to finalise a proposal for a 300-bed hospital within one week.
Chairman Wapda, during the briefing, also told the prime minister that it would be impossible to complete the project in such a short period of time.
Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said that he gets goosebumps during presentations on development during his term in office thus far when he realises how much time was wasted in the past four years, referring to the regime of Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.
During his speech, Shehbaz maintained that he will refrain from political matters, as there will be other opportunities to reveal the truth before the nation.
PM Shehbaz expressed faith in Gen Muzzamil and claimed that he was “sure” that those working on the project will “keep up” their efforts.
He emphasised the need to think of the powerhouse where 60-70,000 watts of electricity will be generated by the dam. “Nothing is impossible, provided we get our act together”.
Addressing the crowd in Urdu, after he finished his speech in English for the “foreigners”, PM Shehbaz said that the construction of the dam will be a milestone for Pakistan.
“125-30 million acre-feet of water passes by this dam, but we can only save 25-30 million acre-feet, which is unfair for our people,” he said, adding that everyone must learn from the mistakes of the past and not let this “gift” of nature go to waste.
He said that the PML-N government in 1998 provided funds for the purchase of land for dam and its previous premier Shahid Khaqan Abbasi pushed the project during his stint in 2018.
Shehbaz also felt the need to establish a hospital in Chilas. Besides this, he also announced construction of a 1,300-km long tunnel to improve communication means in the city.
Wapda Chairman said that the project was facing numerous challenges. However, the project after its completion would generate 16,000 job opportunities as numerous other programmes worth Rs2.6 trillion were being initiated, he added.
