LAHORE: Wapda Chairman Lt-Gen Muzammil Hussain (retd) Sunday visited the multi-purpose Diamer Bhasha Dam to review construction work on the project, being constructed on River Indus 40 km downstream of Chilas town and 180 km upstream of Tarbela Dam. Pakistan Army’s 10 Corps Commander Lt-Gen Sahir Shamshad Mirza also accompanied him during the visit.
Wapda GM (Land Acquisition & Resettlement) Brig Shoaib Taqi (retd), GM (Diamer Bhasha Dam project) Muhammad Yousaf Rao and representatives of the consultants and the contractors were also present. Addressing on the occasion, 10 Corps Commander said he is pleased to witness the construction activity at the Diamer Bhasha Dam, which is a project of national importance. Reiterating the support of Pakistan Army for construction of Diamer Bhasha Dam, he said we stand committed to providing safe and secure environment in the project area so as to enable the project management to smoothly continue construction activity on all sites of the project. Wapda chairman said Diamer Bhasha Dam is one of the most significant projects for sustained development in Pakistan as it would provide water for agriculture, mitigate floods and generate low-cost electricity.
Therefore, concerted efforts are needed on part of all the stakeholders for its scheduled completion in 2028-29. Referring to the benefits of Diamer Bhasha Dam, the chairman said the project will change destiny of the nation by stabilising economy and alleviating poverty from the country.
He said the project is also turning out to be a game changer for the locals, as a hefty amount of Rs78.5 billion is being spent on various development schemes as Confidence-Building Measures (CBMs) in the project area. Wapda chairman, accompanied by 10 Corps Commander, also visited various sites of the project and witnessed construction activities there.
Earlier, during a briefing about progress on Diamer Bhasha Dam, the project authorities apprised that at present, construction work is being carried out simultaneously on eight different sites including access roads, permanent access bridge across River Indus downstream of the Main Dam, 21 MW-Tangir Hydropower Project, excavation of dam abutment from the top, diversion tunnel, diversion canal, diversion inlet and power intake.
A detailed deliberation was also made about the CBMs being taken by Wapda for well-being of the locals relating to health, education, tourism, and infrastructure development in the project area. More than 16,500 employment opportunities will be created during construction of the project in a phased manner.
The people residing in the project area are being given priority for the jobs, as about 3,200 locals have already been employed at the project by Wapda, the consultants and the contractors. Diamer Bhasha Dam will have a gross water storage capacity of 8.1 MAF to irrigate 1.23 million acres of additional land. With installed power generation capacity of 4,500 MW, the project will provide more than 18 billion units per annum to the National Grid.