Faryab Residents Want Work Resumed On Dahan Dara Dam

MAIMANA (Pajhwok): Some residents of northern Faryab province have voiced concern over the suspension of construction work on Dahan Dara dam, urging the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) to resume work on the project.

At the same time, hundreds of locals also pledged financial support for restarting the construction work on the project.

Provincial officials welcomed people's support and said they had shared the issue with the Office of the Prime Minister and the supreme leader of IEA, who had promised efforts to meet demands of the people.

Dahan Dara is one five major dams of Afghanistan, with a height of 67 metres and storage capacity of more than 20 million cubic metres of water.

Once completed, it will irrigate about 4,000 hectares of farmland and generate one and a half megawatt of electricity.

Work on the dam started about five years ago at a cost of over 37 million US dollars, but was later suspended.

Concerned over the stoppage, residents of the province organised a public meeting in Eidgah Mosque in Maimana city, the provincial capital, on Wednesday, where they discussed the issue in detail.

Rohullah Aimaq, a youth from the provincial capital, told Pajhwok Afghan News that a 15-member committee representing different walks of life was formed at the meeting.

He said the committee shared its support plan and fundraising mechanism for the dam with the governor.

He added the project had been contracted a decade ago for $37 million, but construction work had remained a dream so far.

He hoped the government would pay serious attention to the matter and restart work.

Maulvi Gul Ahmad, a religious scholar and inhabitant of Sabz area in Pashtonkot district, said water shortages had forced people to come together and join hands with the government to complete the half-built dam.

He added:“If IEA includes Dahan Dara dam in its development agenda, people are ready to support it financially and with manpower.”

Eng. Aman Amin, another resident of Maimana, said preliminary work such as survey, design, estimates and excavation had been carried out by the previous government, but all these came to a halt after the political change.

He stressed the dam was vital for Faryab residents, saying the contracted company was still willing to resume work- provided IEA allocated the necessary budget.

Prof. Abdul Qodus Qelich, head of the provincial elders' council who led the meeting, said more than a thousand youths, businessmen, money changers, media activists, community representatives and ordinary residents had launched an advocacy group through WhatsApp called“Dams of Hope-Life for the People of Faryab”.

The group voiced both moral and financial support for the government's programmes on Dahan Dara and Almar dams.

Meanwhile, Energy and Water Director Maulvi Mohiuddin Mubaraz, hailed the initiative of the people, saying Dahan Dara was a crucial project.

He said with groundwater levels plunging to 100 metres deep, residents faced an acute shortage of water, making the construction of the dam essential.

He said the public committee should specify how much of the required budget could be provided locally, so the government could arrange the rest accordingly. If the people's financial plan was approved by central authorities, a joint committee of locals and officials would be formed to manage the funds in a designated bank account.

Faryab governor Maulvi Abdul Ahad Fazli welcomed the initiative, saying he was pleased that the province's committed and enthusiastic people had pledged to stand beside the government for the country's reconstruction.

He told Pajhwok he would convey the people's message and financial support plan for Dahan Dara dam to the Office of the Prime Minister and especially to the IEA leadership and would make all-out efforts to implement the project.

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