Home »Top Stories » Kishanganga project: India willing to change design

  • News Desk
  • May 9th, 2005
  • Comments Off on Kishanganga project: India willing to change design
The third round of talks between Pakistan and India commenced here on Sunday and both sides expressed the hope that objections on controversial Kishanganga hydro power plant on the Neelum River will be removed and the issue will be settled accordingly. Talking to newsmen, Indus Water Commissioner of India, DK Mehta, who is heading his country team, said if the objections of Pakistan were found valid under Indus Basin Treaty, India would be ready to change design of the project. He said that his government was cognisant of the objections raised by Pakistan and added that water availability to Pakistan for agriculture and hydropower projects would not be affected by the Kishanganga project.

He, however, said that under Indus Basin Treaty there was a provision, under which India had the right for limited storage of water on River Jhelum.

He said that two rounds of talks about the issue had already been held in Islamabad and New Delhi and this third was being held in Lahore. To a question, he said before undertaking the project in 2003, India had conveyed about it to Pakistan.

Jamaat Ali Shah, Indus Water Commissioner of Pakistan, who is heading the eight-member Pak experts panel during the three-day talks, said: "we have already conveyed our objections and reservations to the Indian government in black and white regarding the Kishanganga power project and we will have further discussions over the technical nature of the issue."

He expressed the hope that talks would move forward and the meeting would yield a positive outcome.

Answering a question about the possibility of taking the matter to the World Bank, Shah said that Pakistan would prefer negotiations to settle the issue with India and would consider the World Bank arbitration as a second option.

According to him, Pakistan had three major objections to the Kishanganga power project.

First objection is about the design of the plant and its technical aspects and that it violates the Indus Basin Treaty.

Second is regarding the diversion of water by India from River Jhelum while the third is that it will affect availability of downstream water reservoirs of Pakistan.

APP ADDS: Foreign Office spokesman Jalil Abbas Jilani on Sunday welcomed the offer of the head of Indian delegation, D K Mehta, that India was ready to redesign the Kishanganga hydropower project to obviate Pakistan's reservations.

Talking to Voice of America (VoA) he said that Pakistan wants resolution of this issue in accordance with the parameters of Indus Water Treaty to avoid potential dangers to peace in the South Asian region.

"Pakistan reserves the right to seek World Bank's help, if mutual consent is not agreed upon by both countries," he said.

"Kishanganga dam is currently in the design stage only. They have dug a tunnel to divert the water of Jhelum River," he said.

Pakistan has two objections on the Kishanganga dam. Its design is not fulfilling the provisions of Indus Water Treaty. The tunnel would lessen the water flow of Jhelum River which is a clear violation of the Indus Water Treaty, he added.

He said that the nomination of neutral experts by the World Bank was primarily authenticating Pakistan's point of view.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2005


Copyright Associated Press of Pakistan, 2005


the author

Top
Close
Close