ISLAMABAD: A pre-partition project conceived some 121 years back is going to see the light of day.
Prime Minister Imran Khan will be laying the foundation of a 115 kilometres long irrigation channel, namely Jalalpur Irrigation Project, at a ceremony in Jhelum tomorrow (Thursday), ARY News reported.
Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar, Federal Minister for Science and Technology Fawad Chaudhry and PTI leader Jahangir Khan Tareen will attend the event.
The project in question was to be launched in 1898 but couldn’t be materialised for want of funds.
The construction work on the project began in 2007 under then president retired General Pervez Musharraf’s watch but again hit snags in the successive year.
The incumbent government has acquired the land for the project under which a water channel originating from the left bank of Rasul Barrage will provide water to an estimate land spread of 1 lac 70 thousand acres.
The water channel will enhance agricultural produce in Jhelum, Pind Dadan Khan, and Khushab as around 1,00,000 families or 5,00,000 individuals will benefit from it.
The project that will be constructed at an estimated cost of Rs48 billion will be completed in 2024. The Asian Development Bank will dish out 274 million dollars for the scheme.
