Golen Gol power project: Former MNA, Chitral elders demand royalty

Say 30 megawatts should be provided to their district.

PESHAWAR:

Former parliamentarian Abdul Akbar and elders of Chitral district have asked the government to pay royalty for the Golen Gol hydroelectric power project.

Addressing a news conference at the Peshawar Press Club on Monday, they said the project is near completion, but they will not let it benefit the national grid until the government pays Chitral its due royalty.

“The tenders to stretch transmission lines have been issued,” Akbar said. “The land and water belongs to Chitral. Substantial deforestation has been carried out and other natural resources destroyed. Therefore, it is the right of the people to take maximum benefit from the project.”

They also demanded 30 megawatts be supplied to their district because it faces a power shortage. The total power generation capacity of the project is 106 megawatts.



The Golen Gol power project is located on Golen Gol Nullah, a tributary to Mastuj River some 25 km from Chitral town. The deadline for completion was initially set for June 2013.

The former MNA warned of protests and threatened to block work on the project if the people of the area were ignored. Similar to other parts of the country, Chitral also continues to face load-shedding.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 20^th, 2013.