FAISALABAD, Dec 16: The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has set a month’s deadline for resolution of dispute between Wasa authorities and people living along the Jhang Branch canal for the commencement of work on mega water supply project requiring Rs3.5 billion.

This was claimed by the provincial housing and town planning minister, Syed Ali Raza Gilani, while speaking at a news conference here on Tuesday.

He said the Japanese company had left the country ditching the project due to protest of the villagers, living along the Jhang Branch canal, against sinking of tubewells in their area. It had announced that it would provide the same grant for the provision of civic facilities to the people of Rajhstan of India, which was a serious setback for the provincial administration as well as federal government of Pakistan.

The authorities concerned, however, made strenuous efforts to get the project revived, he added.

The minister said he held a meeting with MPA Jehanzeb Imtiaz Gill, who was leading the protest against this mega project. The MPA assured him that he would discuss the matter with the area notables so that the project could be launched after consensus, he said.

He told newsmen that a committee was being constituted to resolve this issue and the Punjab Assembly speaker or he himself would be the head of the committee. The provincial government would make all possible efforts and adopt policies for the immediate commencement of work on this project.

The minister urged the people not to politicize the matter, otherwise, there would be a serious water crisis in the region.

Giving details about the project, the minister said 22 tubewells would be installed along the bank of Jhang Branch canal. Around 20-million-gallon water would be pumped out from these tubewells daily to be supplied to the citizens.

Answering a question, he claimed that there would be no decrease in the underground water level as the national and international agencies had already verified it in a number of studies and surveys. He said over 250 tubewells installed by the area farmers for irrigation purposes were operating in the area for the last so many years. “There is no risk of drop in the water level after the sinking of only 22 tubewells in the area,” he said. A number of area Nazims and Naib Nazims of union councils also assured full cooperation to the government for the implementation of this mega foreign-funded water supply project.

The Faisalabad Greater Water Supply Project started in Nawaz Sharif’s tenure with the financial assistance of JICA in 1998. Wasa’s local chapter had finalized the plan to sink tubewells for pumping the water at the bank of the Chenab, in Chiniot.

However, people and elected representatives of Chiniot protested against the project, claiming that the underground water level would decline due to sinking of heavy capacity tubewells. The protest drive forced the government to change the site after which Wasa authorities selected a site along Jhang Branch Canal in Faisalabad.

The locals protested and refused to allow the foreign and national teams to start their work due to which the JICA abandoned the project.

Later, he told the press conference that Wasa authorities could make up for their financial deficit by other way instead of increasing the water tariff.

The government, he said, was trying to provide facilities to people at low rates. A comprehensive plan had been finalized to provide housing facilities to retired government officials under which a residential colony was being st up in Lahore. The formal ground breaking ceremony of the colony would be held in Lahore on 20th of this month.

He revealed that Faisalabad had been selected as a second station after Lahore for setting up a residential colony for the retired government servants. The proper site for this purpose is being located.