Pakistan's Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi said on Thursday that Indian and Afghan intelligence agencies seem to be involved in the attack on a bus of Chinese engineers working for the Dasu Hydropower Project.
Briefing media about the investigation so far carried out into the Dasu incident, FM Qureshi said that Afghanistan soil was used in Dasu terrorist activity.
"India's intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) and Afghanistan's intelligence agency, National Directorate of Security (NDS) nexus were behind Dasu terror attack as per the probe carried out into the incident," said Qureshi.
At least 12 people, including nine Chinese nationals working on the Dasu Hydropower Project, were killed when a bus carrying them fell into a ravine following an explosion on July 14.
The bus was ferrying the Chinese and Pakistani workers to an under-construction tunnel site of the Dasu Hydropower Project in the remote Kohistan district of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa province.
FM Qureshi said that the car used in the attack was smuggled into Pakistan and the original intended target of terrorists was the Diamer-Bhasha dam site but when they failed there, they chose Dasu next.
On 13 May 2020, the Pakistani government signed a US$ 14 billion contract with a joint venture of China Power and Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) for the construction of the dam. The eight-million-acre-feet (MAF) reservoir with 272-metre height will be the tallest roller compact concrete (RCC) dam in the world.
Diamer-Bhasha project will take 10-12 years to complete. Upon completion, Diamer-Bhasha dam would produce 4800 megawatts of electricity through hydro-power generation.
Qureshi said some elements were strongly upset at the growing friendship between Pakistan and China as well as the latter's "heavy investment in our country".
Chinese firm reluctant to resume work
The talks between the Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) and Gezhouba Group Company on Wednesday remained inconclusive on the resumption of the work on 4320-megawatts Dasu Hydropower project, the News reported Thursday.
The work on the mega energy project was stopped after the death of 13 people, including nine Chinese nationals, in an explosion in a bus. The bus was carrying workers to an under-construction tunnel of the dam on July 14.
"Talks which were postponed earlier last week resumed in presence of the Chinese ambassador Nong Rong but remained inconclusive on the security and other issues," one of the negotiators was quoted as saying. "However, it was mutually decided to hold another round of talks to ensure the early resumption of the work on Dasu dam," he added.
The Wapda's Chairman Lt Gen (r) Muzammil Hussain led the Wapda in talks with the Chinese consortium. The Wapda's chairman also apprised the Chinese company and ambassador regarding the deployment of the army's brigades in Upper Kohistan, Lower Kohistan and Kolai-Palas.
"Now the army's brigades deployed in Kohistan district will escort Chinese nationals at work and back to their respective camps via Karakoram Highway," an official said. Both sides also discussed the progress made by the Chinese agencies and the Counter Terrorism Department in the Dasu bus explosion investigation.
