Senate panel grills WAPDA on dam woes
The committee, chaired by Senator Shahadat Awan, reviewed compliance reports on audit paras of WAPDA and noted that some legal cases had been pending for as long as 21 years.
"WAPDA has not paid attention to these cases for the last sixteen years," Senator Awan remarked, pointing out that land worth Rs10 billion was under WAPDA's occupation, while cases exceeding Rs298 billion — mainly linked to Mangla Dam — remained unresolved in courts.
The committee chairman also raised alarm over the controversial Rs30 billion Nai Gaj Dam contract, which is under investigation by NAB. Senator Awan directed the WAPDA chairman to convene an urgent meeting and present a progress report on all audit-related cases.
Senator Faisal Rahman criticised WAPDA's legal team for its "failure to make headway" on long-pending disputes.
In response, WAPDA Chairman Lt Gen (retd) Muhammad Saeed, who took office only ten days ago, said he had already convened three meetings to address the issues. "WAPDA has many cases for which there is no record, but we are trying to reduce the backlog."
Saeed admitted that WAPDA's records were not digitised but assured that efforts were underway for the purpose. He added that compensation had already been paid to Mangla Dam affectees, though they were still pursuing cases in court.
Officials informed the committee that six cases were currently under NAB scrutiny, including two each related to the Kachhi Canal and Nai Gaj Dam projects. However, the Ministry of Water Resources secretary clarified that these were references against individuals, not WAPDA.
The committee chairman summoned NAB and FIA officials to its next meeting and directed WAPDA and water ministry to present comprehensive details of all ongoing cases. "It is our job to enquire," Senator Awan said.
The closure of the Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower Project also came under discussion after the collapse of its head-rise tunnel. Officials said the project had earlier faced a tail-rise tunnel collapse that was repaired, allowing operations for nine months before the latest breakdown.
Senator Awan, however, deferred the detailed discussion, noting that a committee formed by the prime minister was already probing the matter. "We should wait for the inquiry report before further discussion."
The committee recommended that WAPDA's legal team immediately coordinate with the auditor general and the law ministry to resolve audit-related cases from 2015-16 and submit a detailed report on all criminal and PAC-related cases at the next sitting.
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