MANSEHRA: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif launched the construction work on 4,320 megawatts Dasu hydroelectric power project in Kohistan on Wednesday.

“We are sincerely working for prosperity of the nation but some people are on streets not only against development but also against such mega projects which would change the fate of our country,” he said while addressing a group of local people on the occasion.

On March 28 this year, the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council had approved Rs486 billion for the first phase of the project.

The prime minister said the project would be completed in record time and would help end darkness in the country.

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“I am confident that people will never support those whose politics is against the country because we are facing enormous challenges and these people are creating hurdles in our way,” he said.

The prime minister advised his opponents to wait and asserted that his government would complete its five-year term. “Whatever steps our government is taking are in national interest and we are proud of them,” he said.

The gathering comprising mostly people whose land was being acquired for the reservoir welcomed the project but also voiced their demands.

Some people who were protesting on the occasion were invited by the prime minster to a local hotel where he heard their grievances and assured them that their demands would be met.

“Kohistan is rich in natural resources and soon it will be a model city like Islamabad and people will come to invest here,” he said.

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Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Sardar Mahtab Ahmad Khan and Minister of Water and Power Khwaja Asif were present on the occasion.

The prime minister also visited Naran in Kaghan valley for some time and met a delegation of hoteliers who complained that although the town was a hub of tourism it was still deprived of electricity.

The prime minister asked Khwaja Asif to build a 2MW hydropower project on Kunhar river. He said the work should begin immediately because the small project would cost only Rs200 million.

Published in Dawn, June 26th, 2014