Muzaffarabad: The Prime Minister has announced the formation of a cabinet committee to identify deficiencies and responsibilities in the design of the Neelum Jhelum Hydro Power Project, and has said that any shortcomings or delays in public welfare projects cannot be tolerated.
He made these remarks during his visit to the Neelum Jhelum Hydro Power Project. The Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs and Gilgit Baltistan Engineer Amir Maqam, Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi, Minister for Industry and Production Rana Tanveer Hussain, Information Minister Ataullah Tarar, Prime Minister of Azad Jammu and Kashmir Chaudhry Anwar-ul-Haq and other relevant officials were present at the occasion. The Prime Minister was briefed on the Neelum Jhelum Hydro Power Project.
The Prime Minister, while announcing the formation of a cabinet committee to identify deficiencies and responsibilities in the design of the Neelum Jhelum Hydro Power Project, stated that it is unacceptable to have any flaws or delays in public welfare projects. He emphasized the importance of addressing the shortcomings in the design to avoid any disruptions or delays in the project. He also mentioned that a final report on the incident that occurred in April should be presented this month.
The Prime Minister highlighted that approximately $5 billion has already been spent on the Neelum Jhelum Power Project, which had an initial estimate of $840 million, but escalated to $5 billion and resulted in wasted time. He also mentioned that previous projects of around 3,000 megawatts had costs of $4.4 million per megawatt, and doubling of costs could have been avoided in the Neelum Jhelum project.
The Prime Minister stressed the need for a thorough investigation into the causes of the recent malfunction in the project and to hold those responsible accountable. He also called for a timely and comprehensive report to be prepared to address the issues and ensure that such incidents do not happen again in the future.
The Prime Minister also instructed the Chairman of WAPDA to present a final report on the project this month and to expedite the resolution of the issues in the project as soon as possible. He emphasized the importance of learning from past mistakes and ensuring that delays like this do not occur in the future.