MIRPUR (AJK)-AJK President Masood Khan disclosed that Azad Jammu Kashmir will have numerous electricity and water resources with the completion of 1124MW Kohala and 720MW Karot power projects in the near future. This, he added, will be followed by a cascade of projects including Gulpur, Azad Pattan, Mahl and Dudnial.
The AJK president stated this while addressing the commissioning of 242MW first unit of the Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower project in Muzaffarabad here Friday afternoon.
The AJK president said that Neelum-Jhelum Hydropower project is an engineering and technological milestone for Pakistan which will contribute to sustainable energy production.
He said that the inauguration of this mega project is a matter of great pride for both Pakistan and Azad Jammu Kashmir.
The AJK president felicitated the Government of Pakistan, the Wapda chairman and their team for successfully completing the project. He also congratulated the donors, consultants and the Chinese companies that worked on the project.
Masood Khan said that the AJK is passing through a golden period of development and a number of dams are being built throughout the state, which will revolutionize the economic landscape of the region. The AJK president said that AJK has the potential of producing over 8,000MW from its rivers. "By the year end, we will achieve production of around 2400MW," he informed.
Narendra Modi, he said, has been claiming of cutting off the waters to Pakistan. He asserted that India is not an upper but instead has forcefully become an upper riparian by occupying Kashmir and its people.
He said that AJK is on the cusp of an economic and commercial revolution, especially after becoming a formal part of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor. The AJK president on the occasion thanked Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi for Pakistan's full support to various development projects. He said that Kashmir was, is and will be an asset for Pakistan; effectively contributing to the political, social and economic strengthening of the country. Azad Kashmir determination to become self-sufficient and an economic engine for Pakistan, he said.
AJK Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider, Federal Minister for Kashmir Affairs Ch Barjees Tahir, Syed Javed Ali Shah, Minister of State for Information Maryum Aurangzeb, AJK Cabinet Ministers, members of the AJK Legislative Assembly and Wapda Chairman Lt-Gen (r) Muzammil Hussain were present on the occasion.