(Source: AP)Pakistan expects China to fund a long-delayed Indus river mega dam project in Gilgit-Baltistan with work beginning next year, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal said in an interview to Reuters. “This water reservoir is most critical for food security in Pakistan, so is a very high priority project for Pakistan,” Iqbal told Reuters late on Monday at his ministerial home in Islamabad. India has previously opposed any construction in the Indus Basin it claims as its own, and has criticised CPEC because the $57 billion corridor runs across disputed territory. India this year fast-tracked $15 billion worth of dam projects on its side of Kashmir, despite fears from Islamabad that the power stations will disrupt vital Indus water flows into Pakistan. “I would say conservatively $20 billion plus (in new investment by 2020),” Iqbal said, adding this would also include private investment.

Source: Indian Express June 13, 2017 16:35 UTC