Hingol Dam

Hingol Dam is a proposed small, low-head, Central Core Zone, hydroelectric power generation dam of 3.5 megawatt (MW) generation capacity, located in the Lasbela District across the Hingol River in the Balochistan province of Pakistan. It is located at a distance of 260 km northwest of Karachi and about 16 km north of bridge across the Hingol River on the Makran Coastal Highway and about 8 km north of Kund Malir where the river falls into the sea.

Main Uses
With the construction of the proposed Hingol Dam, flood waters of Hingol River will be stored. Gross storage of the reservoir is 2.10 MAF of which an average of about 1.3 MAF water will be annually available for developing irrigated agriculture of the command area of 80,000 acres. This project will produce 3.5 MW of power generation with annual energy of 4.4 GWh.

Other Benefits
Damming the flow of Hingol River will save the flood water for irrigated agriculture development, power generation and water supply for drinking and other domestic uses. The project is poised to uplift the local community of the area by consequently rising the living standard of the people and generating novel employment and business opportunities. Such indirect benefits, however, cannot be quantified in monetary term. The direct receipt of the project will be available in shape of irrigation service fee (Abiana) and receipt of cost of sale of energy to consumers. The project would greatly increase the development of fisheries in the area and provide recreation and employment opportunities to the residents of the area. The estimated cost of the project will be worth US$311 Million. Out of which US$227 Million for civil works and US$28 Million for electro-mechanical works are required.

History
Feasibility studies for the dam were completed in 1992. However, due to various reasons including financial constraints and local opposition, the dam is still not constructed. In 2008, members of the Balochistan Assembly opposed the construction of the dam. The local Hindu community protested the construction of the dam as it will damage the historic Hindu temple Hinglaj Mata and would destroy the eco-system of the nearby situated Hingol National Park.

The proposed was shifted 16 km upstream to the original site to facilitate the demands to protect the temple, however since then due to financial constraints progress on construction of the dam is slow.

Protest by Hindu community
The proposed plan to build a dam in the Hingol River close to the Shri Hinglaj Mata temple shrine, which is a major Hindu pilgrimage centre in Pakistan. The dam would have flooded the accommodation roads to the temple and endangered the locality and its associated festivals. Following protest from the Hindu community, the dam proposal was abandoned by the Balochistan Assembly. However, the Water and Power Development Authority of Pakistan initially suggested relocating three holy places to a higher elevation and guaranteed the construction of a new access road. This proposition was rejected by the Hinglaj Sheva Mandali, which argued that these sites were not like common temples and could not simply be relocated.

In 2008, the lawmakers in the Balochistan Assembly reacted to the concerns and protests of the Hindu community and asked the federal government to stop the project. In 2009, following a one-year of suspension, the power and development authority chose to continue with the controversial Hingol Dam construction plans. However, they decided to shift the site of the dam a few kilometers north in order to protect the temple. This resolution was reached through a consensus among the Power Development Authority, the Balochistan Assembly, and the Hindu community.

Salient Features
Type of Dam: Central Core Zoned Dam

Maximum height of Dam:172 ft

Length of Dam:2500 ft

Gross Storage Capacity: 1.3 MAF

Installed capacity: 3.5 MW

Command Area: 80,000 acres

Cropped area: 160,000 acres

Cropping Intensity: 200%

EIRR: 16.37%

B.C. Ratio: 1.45:1

Current status
cleared for approval of ECNEC. Project (New Site) in progress, was to be completed by January 2011.
 * PC-I Proforma (New Site) cleared by CDWP in its meeting held on November 19, 2009, and
 * Detailed Engineering Design and Tender Documents of the New Site is in progress Studies of the p
 * Construction bids were invited on July 11, 2011.