Maidan Wardak residents want hydropower plant restored soon

MAIDAN SHAHR (Pajhwok): Residents of central Maidan Wardak province want rehabilitation and reactivation of the Chaki Wardak hydropower plant in Chak district as the oldest dam has been inactive for the past three years.

Halim Jan, a resident of Bambayee area, said: “Electricity supply from the plant to Chak district was cut off three years ago.” He urged to government to reactivate the hydropower dam.

Maulvi Abdullah Khadem, director of the hydropower plant, said the network had three turbines but they were inactive for last three years.

“Six year ago, the Ministry of Water and Energy signed an agreement with an Afghan company named Al-Hashim and a Tajik firm Omid Jalalian to restore the power generation facility at a cost of 13.5 million afghanis, but the work was not completed due to negligence of the previous government,” he informed.

Eng. Mohammad Mirwais, the contractor of the power station, said: “During the previous government when the ministry was divided into two parts, then no budget was allocated for this project and the work remains incomplete.”

According to him, government officials had promised to restore the power station six months ago, but according to him, no practical action has been taken so far.

Maulvi Abdul Haq Talha, director of electricity in Maidan Wardak, said that he had shared the issue of repairing this dam with the central government and they had assured practical measures.

sa/ma