ISLAMABAD, Sept 4: The project for raising Mangla Dam’s height has been delayed after Azad Kashmir Prime Minister Sardar Sikandar Hayat Khan left for United Kingdom for medical treatment, sources told Dawn on Monday.

According to sources, the Water and Power Development Authority planned to launch the project on March 23, which got delayed due to resistance by the AJK government till Aug 14 and then till Sept 3.

During the period, meetings, including a few presided over by President Gen Pervez Musharraf and attended by top brass of AJK government, were held.

The opposition in AJK also supported the Muslim

Conference government in pointing out that the raising of Mangla would render more than 40,000 people homeless and their rehabilitation and compensation issue should be addressed first.

Sources said Information Minister Nisar Memon was sent by Wapda to meet AJK

President Sardar Mohammad Anwar Khan on Monday to get his nod for starting work on the project.

However, the president asked the minister to ask Wapda to wait for the return of the prime minister.

The government had set up three committees to assess the number of affected people and estimated cost of payment of compensation for their land that comes under the project, besides providing them shelter.

President’s Kashmir Committee Chairman Sardar Abdul Qayyum Khan also raised the question of compensation and rehabilitation of those who would be affected by the project, in his meeting with President Musharraf last week.

The president assured him that the people of the area coming under the project would be provided compensation.