K-P Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur’s unprompted and unnecessary expression of support for Kalabagh Dam has revived debate over the doomed project. According to its proponents, the proposed dam on the Indus River in Mianwali would generate 3,600 MW electricity and would be a boon for agriculture by improving irrigation, and potentially mitigate flooding. However, the dam’s impact on water supply further downriver in Sindh, and even regionally in K-P, makes it a non-starter, as no elected government in either province has ever fully supported it. Even military dictators were unwilling to push through the project — such was the opposition in Sindh and K-P.
The economic arguments are equally prohibitive. The dam is astronomically expensive, with land acquisition costs 100 times higher than in the original feasibility study. That money would also come in the form of foreign borrowing, which would only be discounted by the World Bank or others if the government could prove it will properly compensate dam affectees, something we have never been able to do for any megaproject. Its construction would span 15 to 20 years, diverting crucial resources from more immediate solutions to Pakistan’s water crisis.
While this futile debate may only have been started to deflect from poor governance and atrocious disaster management, it is still an opportunity to remind that more viable solutions need to be expedited. The national focus of water policy must shift to pragmatic, cost-effective alternatives that are both politically viable and quickly implementable. Building smaller, distributed dams would avoid interprovincial conflicts while rapidly enhancing water security.
Prioritising better resource management is crucial. In fact, improving irrigation efficiency in agriculture could save more water than Kalabagh Dam would. Sustainable solutions such as managed aquifer recharge and wetland restoration — already being done with some success — could conserve water and protect the local flora, fauna, along with human settlements, without requiring massive infrastructure.
