Basha Dam inaugurated by Musharraf, Elahi: Shujaat

LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) President Ch Shujaat Hussain has said the Basha Dam was inaugurated by General Pervez Musharraf and Ch Parvez Elahi in 2006. Now prior to its inclusion in its election manifesto, the PML-N should first tell why it was blocked for 10 years.

In a statement issued here on Sunday, Shujaat said the water issue has become an issue of security and existence for Pakistan, the order of the Chief Justice for immediate construction of Basha Dam is of historical importance and hopefully, whichever new government comes will implement this order of the Supreme Court in accordance with its spirit.

He said: “The Basha Dam was started in 2006 during our government and this has also been proved during recent proceedings of the Supreme Court that PPP and PML-N government stopped work on it. But thanks to Almighty Allah, the Chief Justice has heard the petition of the nation and issued the order for its immediate construction.

Ch Shujat said: “We politicians keep singing democracy, democracy, but it is a matter of great regret that whatever work was to be done by the politicians has to be done by the judiciary. Politicians saying that the Chief Justice interferes in government affairs is not correct because who had stopped politicians from construction of Basha Dam. He said that back in 1966, the World Bank in its report had warned Pakistan government that by 1990 Pakistan will need another dam with Mangla and Tarbela capacity. If the Kalabagh Dam has not been constructed, its responsibility lies with politicians. Had politicians kept national interest over and above their political interest, by now the Kalabagh Dam would have been constructed and people would have been getting cheap electricity at the rate of Rs2.50 per unit.

He said Parvez Elahi, during his five years tenure in Punjab, paid full attention to construction of dams. As many as 45 small dams were constructed at the cost of Rs11 billion due to which more than 15 thousand acres of barren land in Jhelum, Chakwal, Attock and Rawalpindi became cultivable. Repairs and expansion of Taunsa Barrage and Thal Canal was done at a cost of Rs75 billion and with construction of 850 kilometers of concrete water courses, water reached tail-enders for the first time in South Punjab and agricultural production registered record increase. He said: “This is the reason that cultivators of south Punjab remember our tenure even today.”