Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) is busy preparing a new PC-1 for the construction of Nai Gaj Dam.
Supreme Court of Pakistan (SCP) headed by Chief Justice Saqib Nisar has directed the authority to finish the task within two weeks. The court heard a case regarding the construction of the dam in December. The authority requested for one month to accomplish the task but the court refused to entertain it.
Nai Gaj Dam is an embankment currently under construction on the Gaj River in gorge area at the edge of Kirthar Mountains range about 65 km (40 miles) north-west of Dadu city in Sindh. So far, a tune of Rs.16 billion has been spent on the project which court says should not be wasted. Chief justice has already warned that the parties concerned would be held responsible if the dam was not built within the given time frame. Additional attorney general informed top court the PC-1 of the dam would be revised and a new contractor would be hired for construction. The CJP remarked that projects were started for ‘kickbacks’ and later abandoned on the plea that same were not needed. He also observed that no one from the Sindh government had appeared before the court.
He said the federal government was to release Rs 46 billion for the dam’s construction. About 51 percent of the project had been completed, but the Sindh government was saying that it was not needed anymore, he added. The CJP asked the additional attorney general whether the federal government had released funds for the dam.
On this, additional attorney general replied that Sindh government had changed its approach and was reluctant to undertake construction of the dam. The dam’s construction started in May 2012. It is estimated that water will be supplied from Nai Gaj Dam to 28,800 acres land in tehsil Johi and 300,000 acres in other areas of Dadu District. Moreover, Nai Gaj Dam will supply 50 cusecs of water to the Lake Manchar for decreasing its pollution. Furthermore, the water will also be supplied from the dam to Kachho desert and area of Kohistan in Dadu District.
