India to build Lalandar Shatoot Dam in Kabul

KABUL (Pajhwok): Foreign Minister Mohammad Hanif Atmar and Indian External Affairs Minister Jaishankar have signed a Memorandum of Understanding [MoU] for the construction of Shatoot Dam in Kabul, according to a statement on Tuesday.

A signing ceremony for the construction of the Lalandar [Shatoot] Dam in Afghanistan took place over VTC on 9 February 2021, Indian External Affairs Ministry said in a statement.

The project is a part of the New Development Partnership between India and Afghanistan. The Lalander [Shatoot] Dam would meet the safe drinking water needs of Kabul City, provide irrigation water to nearby areas, rehabilitate the existing irrigation and drainage network, aid in flood protection and management efforts in the area, and also provide electricity to the region.

This is the second major dam being built by India in Afghanistan, after the India- Afghanistan Friendship Dam [Salma Dam], which was inaugurated by the Prime Minister and the President in June 2016.

President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani thanked India PM Modi for the ‘gift of water’

He said: “With Shatoot reservoir, we will be able to implement our vision of restoring natural beaty that captivated the imagination of Babur. I thank India and Prime Minister Modi for offering this gift of water in addition to the gift of vaccines.”

As a part of Development Cooperation with Afghanistan, India has completed more than 400 projects covering all 34 provinces of Afghanistan.

The Prime Minister Modi, in his remarks, highlighted the civilisational relationship between India and Afghanistan and gave an assurance of India's continued support for a peaceful, united, stable, prosperous and inclusive Afghanistan.

Signing of the MoU on Lalandar [Shatoot] Dam is a reflection of India’s strong and long-term commitment towards the socio-economic development of Afghanistan and the enduring partnership between our two countries.

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