Diamer Bhasha Dam is a 4,500-megawatt project with an approximate cost of over $14 billion
China has rejected India’s objection to the construction of Diamer Bhasha dam, saying that the economic cooperation between Pakistan and China aims at better the lives of the local populace through economic development.
Chinese Foreign Ministry’s Spokesperson Zhao Lijian, during the press briefing in Beijing, said that the project would be beneficial for both countries who are strategic cooperative partners and all-weather friends.
“China and Pakistan conduct the economic cooperation to promote economic development and improve the well-being of the local population,” Zhao said.
The spokesperson rejected the Indian external affairs ministry’s criticism of the project, saying that China has maintained a consistent stance on the Kashmir conflict. Zhao also expressed concerns over India’s persistent ceasefire violations along the Line of Control (LoC) in the occupied valley of Kashmir and targeting of the civilian population on the Pakistani side.
The Diamer Bhasha Dam is a 4,500-megawatt project with an approximate cost of over $14 billion. It will also irrigate 1.2million acres of irrigation land and create more than 16,000 job opportunities. One of the biggest dams of its nature in the world, Pakistan’s Prime Minister Imran Khan, gave the go-ahead for the construction of the project earlier in the week.
Pakistan’s Water And Power Development Authority (WAPDA) signed a deal worth 442 billion rupees with China Power-FWO consortium to carry out the construction of the dam. The project has been divided into two parts. Dam construction is the first of the two sub-projects. After the completion of the dam’s construction, the power project will be carried out.