Locally-managed and operated hydel systems suffer huge loss due to floods

PESHAWAR: Besides causing losses to public and private properties, the flash floods have damaged locally-operated and managed hydel systems in the flood-hit Malakand division.

The largest number of them were installed by the Sarhad Rural Support Programme (SRSP) with the financial assistance of the European Union and KFW (PPAF) in Swat, Dir, Shangla and Chitral districts.

The larger powerhouses in Kalam, Kumrat, and Bamburet, Mastuj were run as social enterprises boosting tourism in a big way in the area.

The Booni Powerhouse was providing additional electricity to the Upper Chitral Headquarters at Booni. Besides these, there has been damage to many small community-run projects.

According to the initial assessment made by the semi-autonomous organisation, 18 powerhouses installed by the SRSP in Chitral, Upper Dir, Swat and Shangla districts were damaged in the floods triggered by heavy monsoon rains in these mountainous areas on August 26.

It caused Rs217 million losses to the SRSP in terms of damage to the micro powerhouses.

Some of the installations were washed away and would need complete overhauling, while others can be repaired but would require enough funds. There were five powerhouses in Chitral, including Mastuj, Ayun, Booni, Bamburet, and Koh that caused Rs74 million losses in Chitral alone.

In Swat, seven powerhouses, including Madyan, Bahrain, Utror, and three in Kalam i.e. Ashuran, Jungle Inn and Aryana were swept away in the floods.

In most areas, the floods damaged infrastructure, equipment, intake and portion of power channels, transmission and distribution lines of the powerhouses. The losses suffered by the SRSP to its installations in Swat were Rs74 million, the highest of any other district.

In the Shangla district, the floods affected three hydel micro powerhouses, including Bela Ajmir, Damorai and Kikor Damorai and inflicted Rs18 million losses on the SRSP.

The losses to the three powerhouses in the Upper Dir district, including Thal Kumrat, Tarpatar and Thall were estimated at up to Rs26 million.

Besides these losses caused to the infrastructure and equipment, SRSP is likely to face more huge financial burden as users would be unable to pay for their use, putting their sustainability into question.

These powerhouses were built on local streams and had ushered prosperity and changed local dynamics, particularly in tourist destinations. The SRSP management and team members had struggled hard to collect funds from international donors to establish the powerhouses in the remote and difficult terrains.

They faced multiple challenges in operating the powerhouses and handling the consumers. As compared to the rest of the country, SRSP offered electricity to its consumers at low rates.

There were two major reasons that brought a major change in Kalam and its tourism, one was the construction of 35 kilometres Bahrain-Kalam road and power supply, provided by the SRSP by setting up two small power generation powerhouses in Kalam.

And obviously, the Swat expressway was the third key factor that brought Swat’s beautiful tourist spots closer to the rest of Pakistan and made the journey easier and more comfortable.

Ijaz Ali, a senior SRSP official, was posted in Kalam to look after their installations when the floods hit the tourist destination and personally saw their years of hard work shattered within minutes.

He himself was present in the main Jungle Inn powerhouse and remained in touch with his staff and constantly advised them to take care of their lives and assets.

Within minutes, infrastructure and electrical equipment worth millions of rupees were washed away in the floods, plunging Kalam and its adjoining areas into the darkness.

Ijaz Ali said like many people, they were also waiting for the reconstruction of the Bahrain-Kalam road so that they can start planning their installations.

This job can’t be done without proper government support and financial assistance from the federal government. The SRSP and the government should approach the European Union and seek its support to repair the damaged powerhouses. Thousands of people enjoyed uninterrupted power supply in Kalam valley which helped boost the hotel industry.

In 2013, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government and Pakhtunkhwa Energy Development Organisation had handed the two dysfunctional powerhouses to the SRSP to restore and run them as a social enterprise. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Chairman Imran Khan had gone to Kalam at that time to attend the groundbreaking of the project in 2013. Both these powerhouses at Jungle Inn and Ashuran were set up by the then Sarhad Hydel Development Organisation.

The powerhouses remained operational for a few years but remained dysfunctional for six years after being damaged by the 2010 floods. The SRSP management and engineers worked round the clock and their efforts finally yielded and the picturesque valley was electrified. But their huge investment was once again washed away by the floods.