ISLAMABAD: Water and Power Minister Moonis Elahi stressed the significance of completing the extended Karakoram Highway project as soon as possible by acquiring the remaining 700 acres of land (KKH).
The minister presided over the 17th meeting of the Dasu Hydro Power Project’s Project Steering Committee, where he analyzed the status of the decisions made at the committee’s previous meeting on December 16, 2021.
The minister expressed his dissatisfaction with the district administration’s poor pace in acquiring 700 acres of land. He encouraged the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to make every effort at the highest level to complete the land acquisition by June 30, 2022.
Similarly, he urged the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa administration to aggressively engage with the residents of Pattan for a speedy settlement of their issue in order to avoid a delay in the transmission line needed to supply electricity for the Dasu Hydropower project’s building activities.
When assessing the assignment allocated to Commissioner Hazara Division, the minister expressed disappointment that no progress had been made in negotiations with Pattan residents to resolve their long-standing concerns.
The minister informed members of the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government that the construction of the much-needed transmission line from Pattan to Dasu was being delayed due to delays in resolving issues made by people in the Pattan area.
He expressed his dissatisfaction with the Water and Power Development Authority’s announcement of an increased self-managed resettlement package of Rs3.5 million per household for individuals affected by the Dasu Hydropower Project (Wapda).
He emphasised that the government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa must finish all legalities and pay resettlement dues to the Dasu Hydropower Project’s impacted people within three months. The provincial government’s official assured that the targets would be met.
