THOUSANDS of people gathered to protest WAPDA in the airport area in Chilas over the weekend, accusing it of reneging on its commitments and giving the authority a week to meet their demands. They said they would stop construction work on the dam if their demands were not fulfilled. Their demands include the settlement of 18,000 acres of land acquired by WAPDA without compensation, the disbursement of the Chula Package to over 2,500 households, the provision of residential and agricultural land for affected people and the appointment of locals on posts in the dam project.
It is a sorry state of affairs and the height of deficient planning that we could not sort the fundamental issue of resettlement and payment of compensation to the people affected by the construction of a major water reservoir despite the fact that preparations for the project began in 1984. No large-scale displacements were involved and all issues pertaining to relocation and rehabilitation of the affected people could have been resolved amicably just in two-three years, if not in months, as it involved 35,000 population of 31 villages. The Government has so far released billions of rupees in compensation but unfortunately affected people continue to agitate, blocking Karakoram Highway and threatening to stop work on the dam, which speak of non-transparency in the payment of compensation and slow progress on other components of the compensation package. The government has done well by forming a high-powered committee to visit the area and address grievances of the agitating people. The committee must go deep into the issue, get input from the local population and come out with clear recommendations to settle the issue once for all in the interest of smooth completion of the already delayed vital project.
