Gilani inaugurates Mangla Dam raising project

Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani Thursday inaugurated the Rs 100 billion Mangla Dam raising project aimed at significantly increasing country''s water storage and electricity generation. The event was attended by Minister for Kashmir Affairs Manzoor Wattoo, President Azad Jammu and Kashmir Sardar Mohammad Yaqoob Khan and Prime Minister Azad Kashmir Chaudhary Abdul Majeed.
Prime Minister Gilani also inaugurated the Dhani Gali bridge on River Jhelum, linking the Punjab with AJK and replace the old narrow suspension bridge. The dam after the upraising would have 2.88 Million Acre Feet (MAF) of additional water storage and 644 Gwh of additional hydel generation, with an estimated annual benefit of Rs 18 billion.
He said the government would soon inaugurate the Diamir Bhasha Dam which would store 6 million MAF water and produce 4500 mega watts of electricity. Meanwhile, addressing a big public gathering in Dadhial, Azad Kashmir, Prime Minister Syed Yusuf Raza Gilani said that he was happy to see the political maturity displayed on the stage. This was evident from the presence of incumbent and former Prime Ministers of AJ&K Chaudhry Muhammad Abdul Majid and Sardar Atique Ahmad Khan as well as the present and former Presidents Sardar Muhammad Youqub and Raja Muhammad Zulqernain Khan.
He expressed these views while addressing a mammoth public gathering where thousands of the party workers were present to welcome the Prime Minister of Pakistan. The Prime Minister said that it was unfortunate that such a level of political sagacity was not present in Pakistan. He said that political parties in Pakistan were playing the politics of sit-in and thus creating hurdles in the way of smooth functioning of democratic government.
He said that if the entire political leadership across party divide adhered to democratic values and ethos, the government could accelerate the process of socio-economic development of the country. ''The beauty of democracy lies in its continuity, which any other political system is devoid of," he added. The Prime Minister said that he had undertaken eight visits to AJ&K in addition to those during the recent electioneering campaigns.
These were more than those undertaken by any other Prime Minister in the past. He said that he did not announce development projects during the election campaign of AJ&K. The sole purpose to hold free and transparent elections, the Prime Minister added.
The Prime Minister said that expatriate Kashmirits of AJ&K living abroad were earning billions of dollars precious foreign exchange for the country, so critical for the national economy. He said that such Kashmiris deserved a fair deal from the government.
The Prime Minister declared that Kashmir desks would be set up at Benazir International Airport Islamabad so that the Kashmiris coming from abroad did not face any kind of difficulty at the hands of Customs and Immigration officials. He said that he would direct the Pakistani Missions abroad to encourage recruitment of Kashmiris in the Missions.
The Prime Minister also announced the establishment of Cadet College in Dadhial in order to provide opportunities of quality education to the youth. The Prime Minister also announced the establishment of IT University in Kotli. He also directed the Chairman of Bait-ul-Maal to establish Sweet Homes in Dadhial at the earliest.
Responding to people''s demand for provision of gas and electricity, he said that he would refer the matter to the concerned Ministries to take immediate steps for the provision gas and electricity in the area. The Prime Minister also congratulated PPP, PSF and PYO on making excellent arrangements for the public meeting. He said that PPP was the biggest party of AJ&K, which had the capacity and resolve to solve the problems of the people of the area.