ISLAMABAD, March 11: A group of Kashmiri people on Friday criticized the Pakistani government for carrying out work on Mangla Dam extension project and termed the decision a ‘big mistake’.
Speaking at a seminar organized by the Sustainable Development Policy Institute (SDPI), a spokesman for the Anti- Mangla Dam Extension Action Committee, Mohammad Arif Chaudhry, said the project had been launched on the basis of inaccurate feasibility reports.
The seminar discussed the Mangla dam extension issue and its socio-economic and political impacts.
Arif Chaudhry was of the view that the Rs64 million project after its completion would result in heavy loss of property and livelihood.
“Mangla Dam extension is not acceptable. The government has only painted a positive picture of advantages from the extension and not realized its negative impacts. More than 90 per cent Kashmiris living in the UK and another 140,000 in Azad Kashmir will lose their homes and agricultural land if the dam is completed,” Mr Chaudhry said.
Kashmiris strongly resent construction of the extension project. They know that like in the past the government will cheat them, he added.
Mr Chaudhry, underscoring the socio-economic aspect, said President Gen Pervez Musharraf announced extension of Mangla Dam over four years ago.
It would increase water storage by 2.9 million acre feet resulting in production of an extra 180MW of electricity, he said.
“Over 85,000 people were forced to leave their homes and land when construction of the dam started 40 years ago. There were agreements and promises for compensation by the government which have never been fulfilled,” he said.
To give one example, the government had promised free electricity to Azad Kashmir. After the dam’s completion in 1967 the nearest village got electricity in 1982, he added.
However, the government has now agreed to compensate those affected by Mangla Dam 40 years ago, by paying Rs200,000 to only 8,000 Kashmiris. This proves that the government has been at fault and people back then did suffer immensely, Mr Chaudhry said.
“This time the government has not given serious consideration to the losses people will suffer from the extension project. Without conducting physical surveys for which the state has paid Rs34 million, work has been started,” he said.
Minister for Kashmir Affairs Faisal Saleh Hayat has also been kept in the dark about its negative impact.
Cleaning of the dam to increase water storage is one best option and is cheap. But they do not want to listen to what Kashmiris say, he said.
Mr Chaudhry questioned the need for the extension when India had diverted both Poonch and Neelam rivers from flowing into Mangla Dam and which were its major sources.
“Since its construction in the 1960s, the dam has never been filled to capacity. Even today its like a pond,” he said.
Sharing the political perspective of the situation, Kashmir Freedom Movement President Afsar Shahid said the decision for extension of the dam was made without taking Kashmiris into confidence. Politicians had been pressurized by the establishment to speak in favour of the extension.
“The Kashmiris have made great contributions for development of Azad Kashmir and Pakistan. Almost 75 per cent foreign exchange earnings come from Kashmiris living abroad. The government has once again betrayed their trust and a feeling of hatred is now developing among the Kashmiris,” he added.
The former president of Mirpur Bar Association, Raja Zulfiqar, while speaking on legal aspect, termed the construction of Mangla Dam in 1967 ‘illegal’.