ISLAMABAD, June 23: A departmental inquiry into alleged irregularities in the Rs1 billion Shah Allah Ditta Water Supply Project has confirmed misappropriation of funds, Dawn learnt on Thursday.
Under the project, the main conduction line is being laid from Shah Allah Ditta water reservoir to 13 new residential sectors of the federal capital which have no water supply facility. The investigation showed that pipes costing Rs130 million were missing at the site but payment against them had been made to the contractor.
“Notices have been served on the concerned officials who have been found involved in the scam,” said a senior official of the Capital Development Authority (CDA) who did not want to be named. The issue was also raised in Senate this week when leader of the house Nayyar Bokhari assured the members that he would summon the CDA chairman to inquire about the project launched 15 years back.
However, the Capital Development Authority director general (water management), Sanaullah Aman, said the project was almost complete and no irregularity committed in it. The project had two phases and there was some difficulty in land acquisition which led to its delay, he added. “We had to acquire four sites but the landholders remained reluctant. Now we have acquired two of the sites and negotiations are underway to get the rest.”
He said some sectors, including G-10, G-11, F-10 and F-11, were already benefiting from the project, as water from Shah Allah Ditta reservoir was being supplied to E-10 water system from where it was pumped to these sectors. The upper house was informed that Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani had announced that the residents of Islamabad would start getting water from Shah Allah Ditta reservoir in 2010 but so far not even a single sector has been supplied water despite the fact that the Capital Development Authority has already spent Rs1 billion on it.
The feasibility report and detailed design and geotechnical investigation of 25-km-long conduction main from the reservoir, which is to get its share of treated water from Khanpur Dam under the Metropolitan Water Supply Project via Sangjani, was carried out some 12 years back. The initial estimated cost of the project was Rs640 million which later increased to Rs1 billion.
