‘Nai Gaj dam undertaken without due planning’
Senate panel says people responsible for project’s cost escalation be held accountable
Senate panel says people responsible for project’s cost escalation be held accountable. PHOTO: FILE
ISLAMABAD:
The Senate Standing Committee on Planning on Friday expressed its ire over non submission of reports by the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) and Federal Ministry of Planning on Nai Gaj Dam, a hydro power project whose cost has escalated due to delay in completion.
The committee chairman, Senator Agha Shahzaib Durrani, said the panel had instructed Wapda and the ministry to submit reports of their monitoring teams but despite passage of eight months the reports had not been provided.
Senate panel calls for physical assessment of Nai Gaj dam
Earlier, the committee was told that design of the dam had issues and the project was undertaken without proper planning. The 4.2 megawatt hydro power project being built on Gaj River near Dadu district of Sindh was started in 2012 and was supposed to complete in 3 years.
However, in 2015 the project cost (PC-1) was revised. In 2018 the PC-1 was revised again. No work has been carried out at the project since 2018, the committee was told.
They said the cost of the revised PC-I of the project had reached Rs47 billion, an Rs20 billion increase from the approved Rs26 billion in PC-I in 2012. Speaking on the occasion, a member of the committee, Rukhsana Zuberi said people who handled the project negligently should be held accountable.
Thy said the Sindh government was not abiding by the decision of the Executive Committee of National Economic Council (Ecnec) and the cost of the dam was increasing with each passing day. The project’s initial cost was Rs26 billion.
Objecting to Ecnec’s decision, Sindh had earlier told the apex court that the provincial government could not pay 50% cost of the project. However, the Sindh government had agreed to Wapda proposal on the construction of dam.
Sindh govt’s lack of interest in Nai Gaj dam irks SC
Nai Gaj is a torrent which starts from Khuzdar, Balochistan and after passing through the plains of Kutch enters Manchar Lake. The Nai Gaj banks remain dry for eight months and receive water in four months during the monsoon season.
After Manchar Lake reaches its peak level, water from Nai Gaj often devastates embankments and floods fields.
After inundating farms and destroying houses and crops, the water goes into the sea.
Besides providing continuous flow of fresh water to Manchar Lake, the Nai Gaj dam will also improve socio-economic conditions of the residents of Dadu.
The Senate Standing Committee on Planning on Friday expressed its ire over non submission of reports by the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) and Federal Ministry of Planning on Nai Gaj Dam, a hydro power project whose cost has escalated due to delay in completion.
The committee chairman, Senator Agha Shahzaib Durrani, said the panel had instructed Wapda and the ministry to submit reports of their monitoring teams but despite passage of eight months the reports had not been provided.
Senate panel calls for physical assessment of Nai Gaj dam
Earlier, the committee was told that design of the dam had issues and the project was undertaken without proper planning. The 4.2 megawatt hydro power project being built on Gaj River near Dadu district of Sindh was started in 2012 and was supposed to complete in 3 years.
However, in 2015 the project cost (PC-1) was revised. In 2018 the PC-1 was revised again. No work has been carried out at the project since 2018, the committee was told.
They said the cost of the revised PC-I of the project had reached Rs47 billion, an Rs20 billion increase from the approved Rs26 billion in PC-I in 2012. Speaking on the occasion, a member of the committee, Rukhsana Zuberi said people who handled the project negligently should be held accountable.
Thy said the Sindh government was not abiding by the decision of the Executive Committee of National Economic Council (Ecnec) and the cost of the dam was increasing with each passing day. The project’s initial cost was Rs26 billion.
Objecting to Ecnec’s decision, Sindh had earlier told the apex court that the provincial government could not pay 50% cost of the project. However, the Sindh government had agreed to Wapda proposal on the construction of dam.
Sindh govt’s lack of interest in Nai Gaj dam irks SC
Nai Gaj is a torrent which starts from Khuzdar, Balochistan and after passing through the plains of Kutch enters Manchar Lake. The Nai Gaj banks remain dry for eight months and receive water in four months during the monsoon season.
After Manchar Lake reaches its peak level, water from Nai Gaj often devastates embankments and floods fields.
After inundating farms and destroying houses and crops, the water goes into the sea.
Besides providing continuous flow of fresh water to Manchar Lake, the Nai Gaj dam will also improve socio-economic conditions of the residents of Dadu.