KBD poses a serious threat to the national integrity: PEW
Gravity dams are the better alternative to mega dams
Pakistan can become an electricity exporting country
The Pakistan Economy Watch (PEW) on Wednesday said Kalabagh dam (KBD) poses a serious threat to the national integrity as it is against the wishes of the people of three provinces, therefore, it should be buried.
There are many better alternatives available which should be considered by the policymakers, it said.
Dr. Murtaza Mughal, President PEW said that China has offered to construct forty gravity dams on the banks of River Indus costing double than KBD producing fifty thousand megawatts or fourteen times greater than the controversial KBD.
Gravity dams will give an unprecedented boost to GDP and exports while Pakistan will become an electricity exporting country, he added.
Murtaza Mughal said that global trend has shifted to environmentally-friendly small dams which must be followed and Pakistan can also copy Japanese model of run-of-the-river dams.
He said that opponents of KBD say that it is designed to steal water and it will play havoc with the agriculture of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh.
He said that there is no opposition to the Dasu, Diamer-Bhasha, and Munda dams which will have more storage capacity and will generate 9520 megawatts as compare to 3600 megawatts from KBD.
These three dams could be upraised which is not possible in case of KBD and they are immune to silting while KBD would require desilting after 15 years. These dams would increase the life of Turbela by fifty years while KBD would not benefit Turbela in any way.
The former government failed to properly fund the said dams to waste trillions of rupees for symbolic projects like Orange train and metro which was criminal, he said.
Murtaza Mughal noted that three provinces are against KBD and provincial assemblies have also passed resolutions against it, therefore, insistence on this project will not benefit the federation.
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