How anti-development lobby ‘cooked’ a conspiracy against Mohmand Dam

By Munawar Hasan
November 12, 2019

LAHORE: A fake complaint against Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) over construction of 800 megawatt (MW) Mohmand Dam was finally quashed as the complainant, who turned out to be a cook, living in a far-flung area, denied filing a case before Lahore High Court and National Accountability Bureau (NAB).

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To an utter surprise, the name and identity, used for lodging a fake complaint with the chairman NAB and a frivolous writ petition before the Lahore High Court against the award of Consultancy Contract for Mohmand Dam Project, turned out to be that of a cook, Mehboob Elahi, residing in the remote area of Choti Zerein of Dera Ghazi Khan District.

The NAB dismissed the complaint after finding it fake and communicated it to Wapda in writing earlier last week. This act seems to be an attempt by the anti-dam lobby to jeoperdise Mohmand Dam by creating hurdles in the way to constructing the project, said an official. The WAPDA has reportedly decided to initiate legal proceedings in the matter at the appropriate forum.

Mohmand Dam Project is being constructed on Swat River, about 5 kilometres upstream of Munda Head Works in Mohmand Tribal District, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Besides mitigating floods, Mohmand Dam will irrigate at least 16,737 acres of fertile land in addition to generating 800MW cheap hydropower. The storage capacity of dam stands at 1.29 million-acre feet (MAF).

The false complaint was lodged in the name of Mehboob Elahi before the chairman NAB on May 21, 2019, seeking intervention of the bureau against the award of Consultancy Contract for implementation of Mohmand Dam project, praying to act against WAPDA personnel, allegedly for procuring the consultancy services in violation of the rules. Interestingly, as a sequel to the complaint, a writ petition was also filed in the Lahore High Court on May 25, 2019, using the name and identity of Mehboob Elahi, seeking a stay order against the procurement process.

On receiving the complaint, the NAB started probing the matter. Later on, the Lahore High Court on the writ petition also directed the chairman NAB to decide the matter. In the meantime, the WAPDA provided a complete record regarding procurement of consultancy services for Mohmand Dam project as requisite by the NAB, pleading that the whole process was completed in a transparent manner and according to the relevant rules.

Simultaneously, the NAB also summoned Mehboob Elahi to substantiate his case. In response, Mehboob Elahi denied filing any such complaint with the NAB or submitting writ petition with the Lahore High Court, saying that he has nothing to do with the complaint and/or the writ petition nor is he interested in becoming a part of the proceedings.

The chairman NAB, in his written order, dismissed the complaint after examining the record submitted by WAPDA. The organided attempt to jeopardize work on the highly important Mohmand Dam has surprised many. Such kind of fake complaints and fictitious petitions reflect as to how attempts are made in the country to impede development of water resources in general and construction of dams in particular.

Construction of water sector projects assumes utmost importance after Supreme Court of Pakistan, while taking cognisance of looming water crisis in the country, passed a judgment in July 2018, directing the federal government “to take all necessary steps for the commencement of construction and early completion of Diamer Basha and Mohmand Dam projects”.

For smooth execution of the projects, an Implementation Committee on Diamer Basha and Mohmand Dams was constituted by the Supreme Court. In January 2019, the Supreme Court also constituted an Implementation Bench comprising as many as five judges of the apex court “towards the transparent and timely completion and for the faithful execution of the project of the construction of the Diamer-Bhasha and Mohmand Dams”.

It may be noted that the groundbreaking ceremony of the project has been performed by the honorable Prime Minister of Pakistan on May 02, 2019. The Consultancy Agreement was signed on May 20, and Consultants started mobilising with effect from May 27, 2019. Construction activities on the left and right banks’ access roads have been started.

The Detailed Engineering Design of Mohmad Dam was completed in April 2017. As many as 818.27 acres of priority land has been transferred to WAPDA on February 25, 2019.

The contract for construction of the project was signed between WAPDA and CGGC-DESCON JV on March 26, 2019. The contractor has mobilised its manpower and machinery to site from April 04, 2019. The project is expected to be completed by July 2024.

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