ISLAMABAD: The call for the construction of Kalabagh Dam resonated in the National Assembly on Thursday after a lawmaker from the ruling party Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) said the construction of this dam was the need of the hour and urged the political parties to come together for this purpose by leaving their differences aside.

"Construction of Kalabagh Dam is the future of our generations," PTI's Sana Ullah Khan Masti Khel said while speaking on the floor of the House during National Assembly session presided over by Deputy Speaker Qasim Khan Suri.

"The construction of this dam is a technical issue which should be evaluated on technical grounds. Don't make it a political issue. Don't play politics on the issue of national importance. Don't put the future of our next generations at risk," he said while addressing the critics of Kalabagh Dam.

"If Pakistan People's Party (PPP) and Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) can learn from the mistakes of the past and sign Charter of Democracy, then why not a debate be initiated on the importance of constructing Kalabagh Dam? What is the harm in it? Don't try to offer the illogical and unrealistic arguments that construction of Kalabagh Dam would leave the provinces dry and barren," he said, adding that political unity was necessary to forge national consensus for the construction of Kalabagh Dam.

However, Masti Khel's speech did not go down well with the PPP lawmakers who opposed construction of Kalabagh Dam.

"Controversial debates are being ignited in the House,' said Rafique Ahmed Jamali from PPP. "Kalabagh Dam is a 'dead horse' and there is no point in reviving discussion on this issue. Kalabagh Dam cannot be constructed. It can only be constructed if all the provinces are willing."

Another PPP lawmaker Mahesh Kumar Malani supported his party colleague. "An effort has been made to stir debate on a highly controversial issue -Kalabagh Dam. The construction of Kalabagh Dam would leave three provinces barren.

Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad Khan termed Masti Khel's stance on Kalabagh Dam as his 'personal opinion.' "Until and unless all the provinces are willing on the construction of Kalabagh Dam, the dam would not be constructed and there would be no headway in this regard. Prime Minister Imran Khan's policy is to take the provinces into loop on all the issues of national importance and all the related decisions would be taken through mutual consultations," he said.

All those projects would be completed on which there are no differences between the federation and federating units, the minister said, adding that Diamer-Bhasha Dam is one of the most significant projects of the federal government after Mohmand Dam.

He assured PTI Member National Assembly (MNA) Jamshed Thomas that the culprits involved in the killing of a member of Christian community in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa would be arrested and brought to justice.

Parliamentary Secretary for Interior Shaukat Ali said the spread of coronavirus is the main reason as the number of Sikh Yatrees (pilgrims) to Kartarpur has declined. The Sikh Yatrees are allowed to visit Kartarpur without visa, however, they are bound to bring their valid Indian passport for immigration clearance in accordance with a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between Pakistan and India, he said, adding that the list of Yatrees is provided by the Indian authorities 10 days in advance which is shared with the relevant agencies for security and verification. Following their clearance, the Sikh pilgrims are allowed to visit Kartarpur, he added.

On the law and order situation, the parliamentary secretary for interior said the overall law and order situation has improved in the country under the tenure of present government. In the federal capital, the crime rate has reduced by 29 percent over the last two years, he said, adding that only 300 out of two 2,000 Safe City Project cameras were operational when the present government came into power while 1,950 cameras have now been made operational.

Parliamentary Secretary for Commerce Aliya Hamza said the federal government would give billions of rupees of subsidy to farmers of sugarcane and wheat, adding that the government had given subsidy to farmers on fertilizers and on purchase of tractors and the government is focused on the building of dams and on implementation of water policy.

Responding to a calling attention notice, Minister for Power Omar Ayub Khan said the present government is investing in the up-gradation of power distribution and transmission system. The plan to enhance power generation to 100,000 megawatts by 2040 by primarily exploiting the indigenous resources including hydel, coal and renewables is on the cards, he said.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2020