Kalabagh Dam - NWFP's Viewpoint

NWFP's Viewpoint

The NWFP has two main objections to the dam:

• NWFP claims that the running of Cheshma-Jhelum link canal and over drawing of water from Tarbela is a common feature.
• The entire system and canal of Ghazi- Barotha hydro electric project runs in Khyber- Pakhtunkhwa, however the electricity generating turbines were installed just 500 meters inside Punjab so that the royalty is denied to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa..
• While the reservoir will be in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the dam's electricity-generating turbines will be just across the provincial border in Punjab. Therefore, Punjab would get royalties from the central government in Islamabad for generating electricity.. Although, Punjab has also agreed not to claim any royalty on generation of resources from Kalabagh dam.
• Concerns that large areas of Nowshera District would be submerged by the dam and even wider areas would suffer from water-logging and salinity as has occurred with the Tarbela Dam. As the water will be stored in Kalabagh dam as proposed, that will give water level rise to the city that is about 200 km away from the proposed location.. However, engineers having expertise on dam construction repeatedly deny the opinion that Nowshera city could be submerged by the dam lake.
• Punjab follows a paradox policy when it comes to canals to be taken out from Kalabagh Dam. It talks of right bank canal which will supply water to D I Khan, but when talking to Sindh, it denies construction of right bank canal being infeasible.