The design of Chahan Dam has been altered to ensure full pressure water supply to six densely populated union councils (UCs) falling within the jurisdiction of the Rawalpindi Cantonment Board (RCB).
Under the new design, the route of distribution lines has been changed to supply water at full pressure and prevent water theft.
The project cost initially estimated at Rs5.50 billion will increase by Rs1 billion due to the alteration in the design and the recent increase in the price of construction material.
With the completion of the project, 6 million gallons of water per day will be supplied to the six densely populated union councils.
The project concept (PC-1) of the Chahan Dam pending since 2018 in the final stages which will be sent first to the provincial ministry of housing to seek approval from the ECNIC.
A project director of the project has been appointed and a grant of Rs800 million has initially been released.
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Under the new design, the site of the pumping station has been changed and brought closer to the dam while the route of water pipelines from the pumping station and filtration plants has also been altered to prevent water theft along the way. Under the new design, water supply lines will pass along the main road so that the water theft could be identified.
The pipelines will supply water from underground and overhead tanks to union councils Lakhan, Girja-I, Girja-II, Chak Jalaluddin, Mohri Ghazni and Dhamyal.
Sources said that work on the project will start in May 2022 and completed in two years.
The six densely populated union councils face severe water shortages. After the completion of work on the project, the availability of six million gallons of water per day to these six settlements will solve the chronic issue permanently.
According to the sources, the water daily supply from the Chahan Dam will be further enhanced by expanding the network.
Chahan Dam Project Director Saleem Ashraf said that the cost of construction material has increased in the market and the cost of the project could have reached Rs7.5 billion if the old design had been followed. He said that under the new design, the project will be technically more stable and efficient. He said that water will reach its destination with full pressure.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 28th, 2021.
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