Faisal Vawda, the minister for water resources, has said that the delay in the construction of Dasu Dam is costing Rs. 340 million daily to the national and provincial exchequer.
The minister also held talks with Chief Minister of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) Mehmood Khan, representatives of Water and Power Development Authority and the water ministry, along with the senior officials, to discuss the situation regarding the Dasu Dam project.
He told the media that this is the first time the federal authorities have taken the CM KP on board on the dam’s construction.
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He said that the federal government has to bear a loss of Rs.300 million every day while the KP government was suffering a daily loss worth of Rs. 40 million owing to the delayed construction of the reservoir.
Vawda resented that the last government had persistently refused a meeting with the KP chief minister over the issue for the past four years.
He said that now both, the center and the province, have decided to deal with the issue on a war footing. Moreover, he divulged that World Bank has also expressed interest in the construction of the reservoir.
Another meeting is going to take place on November 30 in this regard, he said. He promised that the federal government would extend all possible support to the provinces for their hydropower projects.
Mr. Vawda revealed that even the process of land acquisition could be started in the past few years. However, now both provincial and federal governments will address this issue in collaboration.
It is pertinent to mention here that two weeks ago, the World Bank had expressed concern over the delay in the construction of Dasu Hydropower project and warned that the $3.787 billion loans approved for the project in June 2014 may lapse, if the situation pursues.
Notably, the completion date, while gaining approval for the loan, was determined to be June 2021.
Via: Dawn
