CCI must take up Dam’s issue and build consensus among provinces
ISLAMABAD Oct 30 (TNS): Anybody who opposes the construction of Kalabagh Dam is not a friend of Pakistan. The government must take up the much politicized issue at Council of Common Interests (CCI) to develop consensus among provinces. There will be no looser but all gainers in the construction of the much needed dam
These views were expressed by HumayunSaifullah Khan, former Provincial Minister and member National Assembly from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in a statement here today.
Sharing his in-depth knowledge about the dam while emphasizing on its earlier construction he said the only hurdle for the dam is the mutual mistrust amongst the federating units. It is the sole responsibility of the Federal Government to move fast and take all steps to develop a consensus among the provinces and clear the atmosphere of mistrust.
He said,” Out of 46000 dams built in the world in the 20th Century, Pakistan has constructed only 70 whereas China has built 22,000 and India about 4291. Pakistan’s water profile has changed drastically from being water abundant country to one experiencing water stress. During the period from 1990 to 2015, per capita water availability declined from 2,127 to 1,306 Cubic Meters (CUM) per inhabitant, and will decline further drastically in near future as the increase in population growth is more than the estimated by the expert as evident from the provisional results of the Censuses 2017.
As per the study of World Bank, Kalabagh Dam was to be built by 1995 and Basha Dam by 2010 but we miserly failed to adhere to this schedule and politicized the construction of Kalabagh Dam resultantly the people of Pakistan are suffering from both water and the energy crises. Pakistan has not developed any major water storage infrastructure after Tarbela Dam. Consequently water storage capacity has often receded to less than 30 days against the minimum requirement of 120 days.
Talking about the objection on the part of two provinces regarding construction of the dam, he said Kalabagh Dam became cause of vital dispute, agitation and political conflicts in 80’s during the Martial Law of General Zia Ul Haq. Prior to that there was no dispute on the construction of Kalabagh Dam. Its feasibility report was prepared and finalized in 1975 by the Government of Mr. Zulifqar Ali Bhutto who was a staunch Sindhi.
ZAB would have not supported and pursued this project if it had been as harmful for Sindh as is being portrayed by Sindhi leaders now, he added.
Rejecting the assumptions that parts of KPK will be flooded after the construction of Kalabagh dam, Humayun Saifullah Khan said, Kalabagh Dam or No Kalabagh Dam the cause of flooding in Peshawar Valley particularly in Nowshera is different and should be addressed as per the cause. All the statistical data and the facts on grounds contradict the assumption that Kalabagh Dam will put in dangers of flood to Peshawar Valley. Super floods of 1929 and 2010 testify this fact as there exists no Kalabagh Dam yet the floods hit the area badly.Strategic establishments like Aeronautical Complex Kamra, Military Cantonment and Industrial Zone are located in the vicinity of this area. Had there been any chance of damage to these strategic assets, the authorities concerned would have never allowed the construction of Kalabagh dam, Humayun Saifullah said.
In order to save Nowshera from the flood waters in case of heavy monsoon there is a dire need to find a solution for the natural narrow gorge and construction of upstream dams like Munda Dam on the Swat River and on other tributary rivers of Indus for a controlled flow of water in case of heavy rains, he added.
There is no danger of water logging and salinity in the areas of Mardan, Pabbi and Sawabi as well to the Mardan SCARP Network as all these places are located between 970 to 1000 Mean Sea Level whereas Kalabagh Dam is lower by 55 feet located at 915 feet MSL, he observed.
“My support for the construction of Kalabagh dam is for the reason that the Right Bank Canal from the dam could take about 2.95 MAF of water to Dera Ismail Khan irrigating about 3 million acre barren land and bring a green revolution to the southern parts of KPK. If we look at the volume of water utilized by each province as per Water Apportionment Agreement of 1991 it is evident that KPK is using about 3 MAF less than its actual share and in terms of value KPK lost around Rs.303.62 billion till 2016.Only Kalabagh dam can ensure the supply of due share of water to KPK,” he said.
The main objection of the province of Sindh on Kalabagh Dam is that it will render Sindh into a desert as no additional water is available for the storage and it is Sindh’s water share that will be stored at Kalabagh Dam reservoir. This objection is against the basic concept of the dam. No dam is declared feasible, if surplus water is not available to fill its reservoir. It is not true that sufficient water is not available for storage. In fact after the construction of Kalabagh dam, water more than the requirement of downstream Kotri will be available.
The Sindh opined that cultivation in flood areas will remain no more possible. In fact, Kalabagh Dam will ensure the availability of water for utilization by all the provinces as per their share in accordance with the Water Apportionment Agreement 1991 in addition to cheap power generation at a cost of about Rs.1.10 per unit, he explained.
The objection that the inadequate release of fresh water in Indus downstream of Kotri will allow sea water intrusion thus destroying the fertile lands of Thatta, Badin, Sanghar, Nawabshah and the adjoining districts also does not hold water. Before the reservoirs of Tarbela and Chashma were built, Sindh was receiving, on an average about 35.6 Million Acre Feet from the Indus River. After the commissioning of Tarbela Dam, Sindh province receives an average 44.5 Million Acre Feet of water from the river system i.e.an increase of 8.9 Million Acre Feet. Kalabagh Dam would certainly provide more water to Sindh thus more water in Indus downstream of kotri flowing into the sea diminishing further the chances of sea water intrusion into the Indus delta, he added.
Humayun Saifullah Khan proposed immediate steps by the Federal Government for placing the Project before the Council of Common Interests (CCI) and making all the projects,proposals, suggestions an integral part of Kalabagh Dam Project that could remove the apprehensions and fears of the provinces for simultaneous execution-the sooner the better for us and for our next generations. No more a time for political gimmicks, he concluded.
