No threat to Tarbela dam due to Hunza Lake breach: Engineer General Pakistan Army

Dispelling the impression that Hunza Lake breach could cause any damage to Tabella Dam, Engineer General Pakistan Army Lt. Gen Shahid Niaz Thursday said around 36 villages could be inundated on the downstream of the Hunza river. Addressing a joint press conference along with Director General ISPR Major General Athar Abass and Director General Frontier Works Organization (FWO) Major General Najib Ullah here at the Inter-Services Public Relations (ISPR), Lt. Gen Shahid Niaz was of the strong opinion that excavation of spillway cut along the side of the naturally developed lake on River Hunza near Attabad has reduced the chances of imminent breach to the lake. However, he said that the lake has to breach one day but the chances to avert probable damages to the life and property due to possible accident have been lowered. “Such type of lakes have to ultimately breach and there is no chance for its preservation as a dam or a permanent water reservoir,” he told a questioner. He said that the possible flood wave following breakage of the lake would reach up to Raikot, which is around 400 kilometres down stream where the bed of the river is much more wider than at the point of the lake. Thus, he said, there was hardly any chance of destruction or damage to be caused due to the flood wave. The Engineer General Pakistan Army said that the capacity of Tabella dam is much more higher than that of the size of lake. “If the whole water of the lake comes to the dam only 0.5 capacity of …