The construction on Diamer-Bahsha dam is about to kick off. With Kalbabagh dam buried under the heavy dust of political controversies the Government of Pakistan has left with no other alternative except going for the Diamer-Basha dam to meet its growing energy needs.

Necessary is its construction for the ailing economy of Pakistan, as being built on the river which is the life line for this country, the dam is not free from a string of controversies and issues either.

The first controversy aroused when the dam’s nomenclature surfaced with a name quite alien to the people-Bhasha, a small part of the Koshistan District in KPK. It was after much hue and cry on the par of the populace of GB that government condescended to incorporate a local name, Diamer, thus changing it to Diamer-Bhasha dam.

The compound name further complicated the controversy of proprietary-rights of the dam between two regions, GB and KPK government. The people of GB asserted that the reservoir would be situated in the area of GB; therefore the royalty must solely be granted to them. The people severely resented the idea of including KPK government as another aspirant for the share of royalty.


Similarly, the issue of internally displaced people roused after the formal announcement of the building of the dam. Rough estimates indicated that approximately 32 villages would be inundated and thousands would be rendered homeless after the dam raised. The people had reservation about the relocation and rehabilitation strategy proposed by the federal government.

Moreover, it was another apprehension among the local masses that the region lied on seismic fault lines and a mega dam in such an area might have catastrophic impacts like tremors and earthquakes similar to the one that hit the Kashmir in 2005.

These were some of the major issues and controversies which erupted with the announcement to build the dam. Some of these issues still linger on and require serious efforts on the part of the centre. The centre made a half-hearted effort to resolve these issues and alleviate the apprehensions prevalent among the masses.
Initially the government did not share the very idea of constructing a mega dam in a region that was disputed. This was the reason that mainly occasioned the resentments among the denizens of the region. They perceived it a step to undermine their political rights.

The fact is that the dam is in the region of Diamer, therefore the people deserve to be taken into confidence before any such proposal was finalized. The centre altogether ignored the local sentiments and took the decision unilaterally without consulting even the local administration. It is also viewed that the centre included another claimant of the dam only to legalize the ownership of he project.

As a result, the issue of royalty lingers on even today despite repeated promises by the centre about the even distribution between the two parties. But the two parties, GB and KPK government, want the lion’s share of the royalty and none is ready to give up their stance.

Surely the dam is a boon for the country stricken with a severe energy crisis but it will prove to be a bane for the many local denizens who would be rendered homeless due to the upstream water reservoir. It is not only the land and live stock of the people that would be inundated but their social and cultural heritage; and their ancestral linkages would be drowned in the dam. It requires herculean force and energy to relocate and rehabilitate a population of thousands permanently. At the moment the government seems to be without any meticulously designed plan or if it exists there is hesitation to share it with the people and the local administration of the region.

The people of Gilgit-Baltitan are not against the construction of the dam but they have unanswered grievances and are voicing their fears which are real and legitimate. The government at the centre must realize the gravity of the underlying problems associated with the dam lest it should prove another Kalabagh dam.


Source :The Dardistan Times | News From Gilgit-Baltistan and Chitral