India denies report on Miyar power project

ISLAMABAD: India has vehemently denied reports in the Pakistan media that it had agreed to either scrap its Miyar (120MW) power project or alter its design on the request of Pakistan. 

India has also dropped hints that it might not attend the secretary level talks next month in Washington. “India has never agreed either to halt work on the Miyar power project or redesign it because of demands from Pakistan. These reports are factually incorrect.

India had before this meeting in Islamabad faced some issues because of the topology in the area where the Miyar power project was being set up”, an Indian official in New Delhi told The News.

When asked, the officials did not have the details of the topology of the region and why it affected the old design of the Miyar power project. The decision by Indian experts was taken much before the Islamabad meeting.

It was for this reason that experts were now busy redesigning the Miyar power project and this information was passed on to the Pakistan side in the two-day meeting which concluded on Tuesday in Islamabad.

It appears simply to earn some brownie points someone from the Pakistan side gave a spin to this ‘redesigning,’ to appear as if the change in design of Miyar was because of concerns shown by Pakistan.

In the past Pakistan has been flagging concern over designs of India's five hydroelectricity projects -- Pakal Dul (1,000MW), Ratle (850MW), Kishanganga (330MW), Miyar (120MW) and Lower Kalnai (48MW) -- being built/planned in the Indus river basin, contending these violate the treaty.

According to Indian media reports three projects, being built on tributaries of the Chenab River, are in the pre-construction/under-construction stages. Pakal Dul and Lower Kalnai are being built in Jammu and Kashmir at cost of Rs7,464 crore (November 2008 price level) and Rs396 crore respectively.

Miyar hydroelectricity project, located in Himachal Pradesh's Lahaul Spiti district, is estimated to cost Rs1,125 crore. Meanwhile, the Hindustan Times now reports that there could be “confrontation” between the two countries over the Indus Water Treaty as Indian officials now say that there is no need to meet at the secretary level in Washington which was proposed by the World Bank, for next month, because it finds this proposed meeting against the “spirit of the pact”.

“India believes that there is no need to look for another mechanism to break the deadlock since the treaty already had a dispute resolution system built in”, an unnamed official commented.

The report explained that “India also believes the WB which brokered the pact in 1960 has lately been “biased” in following the treaty provisions.” It said India could not be party to any meeting “which is against the provisions of the Indus Water Treaty”.

“New Delhi feels the World Bank continues to work against the spirit of the pact by initiating two separate dispute resolution mechanisms,” said the Indian newspaper. Minister for Water and Power Khawaja Asif said on Tuesday that Secretary level talks on Ratle Hydroelectric plant will begin on April 12, in Washington between the two countries.