PESHAWAR: The Peshawar High Court has directed the provincial energy and power secretary and other relevant officials to file response within 15 days to a petition challenging a delay in the completion of a Lower Dir power project.

A bench consisting of Chief Justice Qaiser Rashid Khan and Justice Ijaz Anwar issued the directions after holding initial hearing into the petition of Lower Dir resident Rahim Shah Akhunkhail, who sought orders for the respondents to ensure early completion of work on the Koto hydropower project.

It directed four respondents, including the provincial energy and power secretary, chief executive of the Pakhtunkhwa Energy Development Organisation, Koto project director, and Sichuan-Sarwar-Silian-Chungqing Luyang, a joint venture company contracted to execute the project.

Schedule of the next hearing will be announced later.

The petitioner’s counsel, Malik Mohammad Ajmal Khan, said that the site for the Koto hydropower project was identified by the government in 1992 with the help of the German Technical Cooperation (GTZ).

Resident calls for early completion of work

He said that the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council approved the project in Aug 2014, while work on it was inaugurated on July 5, 2015.

The lawyer said that the River Panjkora project meant to generate 40.8 megawatts of energy was to be completed within four years, by Feb 2019 to be exact, but it had entered a slow lane.

He said that a national newspaper reported on May 24, 2021, that 90 per cent of the project work had been completed and the rest would be completed by Dec 2021, but another news report put the completion time at Dec 2022.

Mr Khan said that work was under way even after the deadline extension.

He contended that the main objective of the project was to “develop power potential in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on the sustainable basis and provide environment-friendly energy” to the people.

The counsel said that it was one of the key Pedo projects and was meant for producing cheaper, renewable and environment-friendly electricity to meet current and future needs of the country, especially rural and remote areas of the province.

He contended that according to experts, the project would be highly beneficial due to low cost of production and thus, saving foreign exchange spent on the import of thermal fuels.

Mr Khan added that the successful execution of the Koto hydropower project would help prevent the release of poisonous gases into the air.

He said the annual CO2 release by a thermal power plant came to around 71,100 tons and by diesel thermal plant to 129,560 tons.

The counsel referred to Article 9 of the Constitution and contended that the environment and its protection were integral to the people’s right to life and dignity.

He added that it was the responsibility of the state to provide a healthier and cleaner environment to the people.

Mr Khan contended that besides power generation, the project would also play an important role in the economic development of the country in general and that of Dir Lower district in particular.

Published in Dawn, January 14th, 2023