PESHAWAR: The civil society activists from Chitral on Tuesday alleged the misuse of foreign funds meant for the establishment of micro-hydropower stations in the district and demanded of the federal and provincial governments to immediately act against the culpable officials.

Addressing a news conference at the Peshawar Press Club, Mohammad Haroon said the PTI government in the province had approved four years ago the establishment of more than 58 micro-power stations in Chitral through the Sarhad Rural Support Programme and Aga Khan Rural Support Programme.

He said the SRSP had promised to complete all projects in 19 months but ironically, that hadn’t happened.

Civil society threatens sit-in in Islamabad on the matter

Accompanied by members of the civil society Abdul Aziz, Syed Ghazi, Syed Mehruddin and others, Mr Haroon said among those projects were 800kw Mastuj power station, 500kw power station in Booni, 2mw Golen Gol hydropower station, and Khot Forada power station, which failed to produce the required electricity.

He said Mustung power station generated 200kw instead of 800kw, Booni’s 200kw instead of 500kw, Golen Gol’s 500kw instead of two megawatts and Fardag Khot’s 150kw only.

The civil society activist said the European Union had provided millions of dollars funds to the SRSP five year ago to control deforestation by setting up micro-hydropower stations in the district.

He also complained that the people weren’t given the required transmission lines and electricity pylons from the four micro hydropower houses, while work on those facilities was substandard.

Mr Haroon also alleged that the funds were being distributed among relatives and blue-eyed people by those at the helms of affairs in some nongovernmental organisations working in the district.

He urged foreign donors, federal and provincial governments and the Supreme Court chief justice to take notice of the alleged corruption in the community-driven public welfare schemes in Chitral to bring the culpable people to justice.

He warned that if demand wasn’t met, then a sit-in would be staged outside the offices of donors in Islamabad after Eidul Fitr.

Published in Dawn, May 9th, 2018