LAHORE: This is with reference to your editorial ‘Development and displacement’ that discussed the problems being faced by those displaced due to the construction of various development projects (January 22). I would like to point out that Wapda has all the essential infrastructure, as well as the mechanism, to cope with both small and big projects, keeping in view all the national and international safeguards, policies and statutes. After the announcement of Wapda’s Vision 2025, eight priority projects for major dams were identified at an estimated cost of Rs28.7 billion.
Wapda hired the services of national and international consultants through transparent competitive bids for the preparation of a resettlement action plan, an environment impact assessment and an environment management plan. Wapda had also created an exclusive land acquisition and resettlement wing comprising social scientists of all relevant specialties in line with international safeguard policies and the Asian Development Bank’s (ADB) guidelines. This wing reviewed the abovementioned plans, mobilised the affected communities and interacted with all stakeholders.
In case of the Diamer-Bhasha Dam, the cost of land and compensation was settled through a negotiated process under the auspices of a ministerial committee formed at the federal level in which 40 representatives of project affectees from the Diamer District participated. As a result of the negotiations, as envisaged by international safeguard policies, the land compensation was increased from Rs26 billion to Rs42 billion in addition to Rs8 billion as compensation for assets. Special emphasis was laid on the resettlement action plan, which was prepared according to international best practices and after due consensus was reached with all stakeholders. The affected persons of the Diamer-Bhasha Dam project will be settled in specially designed model villages at Chilas and will not be dislocated from their district. Special provisions have been made to provide them with health, education, necessary amenities and business restoration facilities at the relocated model villages. Wapda is also running a vocational training institute at Chilas to train the local youth in necessary skills with a view to providing them jobs in project-related activities. Nearly 250 young people have been trained at the institute and 92 have been given jobs in the project. To build confidence among the local population, Wapda has also earmarked Rs68 billion to provide social services enumerated above for the affectees of this project. While developing social action plans for the area, Wapda had interacted with leading organisations in the social sector, which were of international repute. Special emphasis was given to gender issues and plans have been made to protect rock carvings and local cultural heritage under the guidance of international consultants. Pilot testing of the resettlement action plan had been done in the Thore Valley of Chilas and was much appreciated by the ADB and other donor agencies.
Thus, it is apparent that Wapda is quite cognisant of the problems and the ground situation, and is making continuous efforts to foresee and resolve all issues and redress the genuine grievances of all stakeholders in line with international best practices and safeguard policies.
Muhammad Abid
Director, Public Relations, Wapda
Published in The Express Tribune, January 25th, 2013.
