Pakistan dam to be a record setter

A new mega water project in northern Pakistan is set to help the country quench its thirst and to supply it with more energy.

Construction of the Diamer Bhasha Dam, near Chilas, a historical city of Diamer district in Gilgit-Baltistan, began last week.

"Diamer Bhasha Dam is all set to change Pakistan's destiny by addressing its energy and water irrigation problems," Federal Minister for Water Resources Faisal Vawda said. "It's Pakistan's lifeline."

According to official data, Diamer Bhasha Dam's reservoir will be 272 meters high, which is said to make it the tallest roller compact concrete dam in the world.

It will have a spillway with 14 gates and five outlets for flushing out silt. Construction of the diversion system will involve two tunnels, a diversion canal and powerhouses.

Asim Saleem Bajwa, chairman of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor Authority, said the dam would generate about 4,500 megawatts of hydro power. Prime Minister Imran Khan officially launched construction work on Wednesday.

'The biggest in history'

"Diamer Bhasha dam will be the biggest dam in Pakistan's history," Khan said. "The dam will benefit the country both economically and environmentally, especially the people of Gilgit-Baltistan." Construction of the dam would create 16,000 jobs, Asim Saleem Bajwa said.

The project, with a total financial outlay of billions of US dollars, is expected to be completed in 2028. It will be used for water storage, flood mitigation, and water diversion for irrigation and power generation.

"This is no ordinary project," said Ahmed Quraishi, a senior fellow at Project Pakistan 21, an independent research organization in Islamabad.

"It will impact Pakistan's economy, security, and politics, and it will give Chinese engineers another distinction for undertaking difficult and challenging construction projects internationally."

Diamer Bhasha Dam is being built jointly by the Frontier Works Organization of Pakistan and Power Construction Corporation of China. "We are grateful to all-weather friend China for extending its support to start work on the mega project," said Vawda, the water resources minister.

Quraishi said: "China's experience in dam construction is unparalleled."

The author is a freelance journalist for China Daily.