Secretary Water Resources Division, Kazim Niaz, has said that it would require a whole month to figure out the reason behind the technical fault in the Neelum-Jhelum Hydroelectric project (NJHEP).
Briefing a meeting of the Standing Committee on Water Resources, the secretary said that there were two tunnels of NJHEP from which one had been blocked. The tunnel is 3.5-km long, and the problem can only be understood by clearing the tunnel, which will require at least a month, he informed.
The government machinery has come into action after the Prime Minister had demanded to resolve the problem on an urgent basis as the national grid has lost 969-megawatt due to the closure of NJHEP.
The secretary, commenting on the recent rain in the country, said that after several dry months, the country experienced heavy rainfall in July, however, the water reserves are still below 70 percent. He said that if there were shortages of water during the Rabi season, then the country will face worse conditions during the Kharif season.
The secretary opined that if the rains continued during the upcoming days, the reservoirs would be filled, curbing the water shortage problem. He warned that if the rain season ended early, it would cause an additional water shortage of 50 percent during the Rabi season.
Chairman of the Committee, Nawab Muhammad Yousuf Talpur, said that the committee needed the participation of all provinces. Currently, only Punjab has representation in the committee, whereas other provinces, including Sindh and Baluchistan, have been ignored. To resolve this issue, the committee wrote letters to the Chief Secretaries of Sindh and Baluchistan for participation during the next meeting of the standing committee.
The committee expressed concern that Indus River Regulatory Authority (IRSA) management failed to develop a proper mechanism of water distribution among the provinces over the period due to mismanagement and lack of coordination with the provinces. The committee, therefore, directed that IRSA may develop proper liaison with all provinces and adopt remedial measures to ensure the timely provision of water so that they could fulfill their water requirements accordingly.
The meeting was attended by Dr. Muhammad Afzal Khan Dhandla, MNAs Engr. Sabir Hussain Kaim Khani, Ms. Wajiha Qamar, Ms. Nuzhat Pathan, and officials of the Ministry of Water Resources.
