Sindhi, Baloch activists oppose construction of Diamer-Bhasha Dam

London [UK], Sep 30 (ANI): Sindhi and Baloch political activists on Sunday organised a demonstration outside the Pakistan High Commission in London to show their dissatisfaction against the construction of dams on River Indus.
The protest was organised by World Sindhi Congress (WSC), which believes the construction of Diamer-Bhasha Dam on River Indus is not merely a political issue, but a matter of life and death for the Sindhi people.
Baloch activists also joined the protest and raised concerns over exploitation of resources by Islamabad.
The protesters said the state is aggressively pursuing construction of mega projects China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) and dams on river Indus without any consideration of rights of indigenous Sindhi people and the environment.
WSC urges the Pakistani administration to scrap any mega dams from plans and instead focus thoroughly on modern water management and electricity generation from solar, nuclear, and other renewable energy sources.
According to reports, The Diamer-Bhasha dam, which has a capacity six million acre-feet (MAF) of live storage, is expected to cost around $14 billion, which will take 30-years to pay-back.
The World Environment and Resources Council (WERC) had earlier urged the United Nation Human Right Council (UNHRC) to look into the grave human rights violations of Sindhi people due to the construction of the dam.
Activists have also strongly opposed the construction of Kalabagh Dam on the Indus River, calling it 'illegal, unethical and immoral attempt' by Pakistan to deny life to the Sindhi people. (ANI)