Daily Times

The Sindh chief secretary appeared before the Supreme Court of Pakistan on Thursday in the Nai Gaj Dam case. A three-member bench of the apex court, headed by Justice Azmat Saeed, heard the petition regarding the construction of Nai Gaj Dam in Dadu district.

The Sindh advocate general argued before the bench that the provincial government had no objection to the construction of the dam. “The Sindh government does not intend to delay the construction of the project,” he said.

The AG informed the court that the federal government had the responsibility to provide complete funding for the project. “The province has the responsibility of land procurement, settlement and security issues. The provincial government is ready to provide Rs 188 million during the first year of the project,” he said. The court then adjourned the hearing after Eidul Fitr.

The Sindh Finance and Irrigation department secretaries also attended the hearing.

At the previous hearing, the bench had issued orders to the Sindh chief secretary to record his statement regarding the construction of the dam.

In March, the court had ordered the immediate construction of Nai Gaj dam and directed the federal and provincial governments to ensure timely provision of funds to the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) for the purpose. The court had asked the Planning Division and the Sindh Irrigation secretary to submit a compliance report.

In April, the Sindh additional advocate general had objected to the decision taken by the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council regarding the project, and stated that the provincial government could not pay 50 percent cost of the project. However, he had said the Sindh government agreed to WAPDA’s proposal to construct the dam.

“The initial cost of the project was Rs 26 billion. It has now risen to Rs 46 billion,” the deputy attorney general had said.