MANSEHRA: Talks on resumption of work on Dasu hydropower project between a committee constituted by affected landowners and Wapda authorities on Thursday remained inconclusive.

“Our talks with Project Director Dasu dam have failed over some key issues and we are going to suspend execution of some more sectors,” Maulana Waliullah Tohidee, one of dam’s reservoir committee members,told reporters after a meeting in Upper Kohistan.

The meeting held between the reservoir committee representing the affected families and project director Dasu dam remained inconclusive as the latter left it ‘in protest’. “We have compelled labourers and engineers to suspend execution of work at some sections earlier this week and are going to halt work in some more areas also,” Mr Tohidee said.

He said that as many as 28 government primary, eight middle and a high schools were inundated by the dam’s reservoir but Wapda was yet to rebuild all of them affecting education of students.

“The roads and water supply schemes, which were approved under public welfare in the Suo and Harban areas, are yet to be executed and the affected people are bearing its brunt,” Mr Tohidee said.

He said that labourers were being hired from outside Kohistan and hundreds of affected families were still without enhanced self-management relocation known as ‘kitchen package’.

“We wouldn’t allow resumption of work on suspended sectors until our 16-point charter of demands is met,” he said.

An official of Dasu dam when approached by this scribe said that payments to over 2,200 affected families out of a total 2,900 had been cleared under the ‘kitchen package’.

“We would clear the restof payments once the local revenue department clears land record,” he said. He added that the government could only rebuild schools if the education department first relocates them.

Published in Dawn, October 11th, 2024