ISLAMABAD, Feb 22: The special committee constituted for talks with Afghanistan on water sharing will meet in Lahore on Feb 28 to finalise a draft treaty to be signed between the two countries to ensure Islamabad's lower riparian rights over waters of Kabul and Kunnar rivers.

A government official said that the committee would also firm up facts and figures about the impact of proposed construction of a dam over river Kabul by Afghanistan on Pakistan's agriculture sector and irrigation system. Initial reports suggest Pakistan would loose upto 16 per cent of river water.

The government had constituted a special committee in September 2003 to look into the impact of the proposed dam over Pakistan's economy and hold negotiations with Kabul so that a water sharing treaty could be signed on the pattern of 1960 Indus Waters Treaty between Pakistan and India.

The committee, led by chief engineering advisor of the government of Pakistan I.B. Sheikh, comprises Pakistan commissioner on Indus Waters Commission Syed Jamaat Ali Shah, member, water, Wapda, director-general (Afghanistan and ECO) of the foreign affairs ministry, joint-secretary, law and justice division, additional chief secretaries of the NWFP and Balochistan, managing-director of Nespak and the chairman of Irsa.

Afghanistan has, so far, not responded to Pakistan's letters about the proposed dam, which it was planning to build over river Kabul near Jalalabad with India's assistance.

The chief engineering organisation/federal flood commission and the Indus River System Authority have been telling the government that a dam on river Kabul would have a negative impact on Pakistan's agricultural economy because it was currently contributing significantly in the irrigation system.

Hence, the Pakistan government should move fast to negotiate a treaty with Kabul over how much storage Afghanistan could develop over the two rivers of Kabul and Kunnar.

Besides, Indian offer of financial and technical assistance to Afghanistan to build storage reservoir on Kabul river, international donor agencies have also been indicating to restore, rehabilitate and develop the water distribution system in the war-torn country.

River Kabul is about 700 kilometres long, and it runs 560 kilometres in Afghanistan and remaining the 140 kilometres in Pakistan, originating from Sanglakh Range West of Kabul city, it flows North of the Khyber Pass into Pakistan, and then enters into Peshawar to join river Indus near Attock.

The river has four major tributaries: the Lowgar, the Panjsher, the Kunnar, and the Alingar. The catchment area of the river is about 26,000 square miles of which the Kunnar Valley alone encompasses around 10,000 sq. miles, most of which lies in Pakistan.

The provincial government of Nangarhar has planned to build an embankment over River Kunnar to divert its water towards Ghambiri desert to bring a vast area under cultivation.

Indian companies are trying to get the contracts of such water-related projects. Indian firms are already carrying out studies at Salma dam near Herat and Kunduz-Khanabad irrigation project.