Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Finance Minister, Taimur Jhagra, has said that the Chashma Right Bank Lift Canal (CRBC) project will transform the agriculture economy of Southern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
In a tweet on Monday, Jhagra congratulated Imran Khan and Chief Minister Mahmood Khan for their “efforts over the last two years that resulted in the CDWP approval of the Chashma Right Bank Lift Canal project, promised to KP in the IRSA accord of 1991, and it’s inclusion in the PSDP; a huge achievement for KP.”
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In March last year, Chief Minister Mahmood Khan had directed the quarters concerned to complete a feasibility study of the Chashma Right Bank Lift Canal (CRBC) and other pre-requisites by March 2022.
He said the project was of vital importance for the food security of the province, in which 65 per cent share belongs to the centre and the remaining is of KP.
Jhagra said, “The delay of this project is a great example of why there is unnecessary mistrust between the smaller provinces and the federal government.”
The minister said, “CRBC will transform the agriculture economy of Southern KP, and hence the food security of Pakistan and that should have been built decades ago.”
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He also acknowledged the efforts of former speaker Asad Qaiser for continuous follow-up, and Ali Amin Khan, Faisal Amin Khan, along with Additional Chief Secretary Shahab Ali Shah, and Federal Water Resources Secretary Kazim Niaz for fighting the case for this national project in the CDWP platform.
Upon completion, Chashma Right Bank Canal will irrigate about 300,000 acres of barren land in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. According to the Planning and Development Department KP, the project will” not only ensure food security in the region, but also increase the export of agricultural products to the Middle East, which will be a source of foreign exchange for the country.”