LAHORE – The Wapda Friday initiated four development schemes worth Rs645 million in the vicinity of Mangla Dam Raising Project as confidence building measures, besides spending Rs70 billion on compensation of land and resettlement works for affectees of the project.
The new schemes included Mangla-Mirpur Road dual-way and three Public Parks, said a statement issued from here.
AJK Prime Minister Chaudhry Abdul Majeed, speaking on occasion, said that Wapda and its leadership did a tremendous job in completing Mangla Dam Raising Project and fulfilling their commitments vis-à-vis compensation package for the affectees. He thanked Wapda for undertaking additional development schemes in AJK.
AJK President Sardar Muhammad Yaqoob appreciated Wapda for not only completing the project of immense importance but also implementing the agreement inked for resettlement and rehabilitation of the affetees in letter and spirit.
Wapda Chairman Syed Raghib Shah said that authority started additional development schemes in view of its corporate social responsibility, adding that all the four schemes would be completed in six months. He vowed to actively execute resettlement and rehabilitation agreements in case of all other water and hydropower projects being constructed in the country including AJK. He said that the project will be instrumental in socio-economic uplift of the country and provide 2.9 million acre feet of additional water for agriculture and generate 644 million additional units of electricity annually from the existing Mangla Hydel Power Station, he added.
Earlier, AJK Prime Minister laid foundation stone of dualisation of Mangla-Mirpur Road, while WAPDA Chairman Syed Raghib Shah, former Wapda Chairman Shakil Durrani and AJK Chief Secretary Muhammed Shehzad Arbab laid foundation stones of the three Public Parks.