ISLAMABAD: Ignoring India's protest, Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf on Wednesday laid the foundation for construction of the controversial Basha mega dam in Gilgit-Baltistan, part of erstwhile State of Jammu and Kashmir.

In the second week of March, India through diplomatic channels conveyed its protest against the construction in territory that is part of Jammu and Kashmir.

Quoting media reports, New Delhi said the reservoir would inundate large parts of land, which falls in the northern part of the State. However, Islamabad maintained that Jammu and Kashmir was a disputed territory and construction of the dam was part of its water policy.

Pakistan zeroed in on the Basha dam after Gen. Musharraf's proposal for construction of the Kalabagh dam kicked off a major row in Sindh and the North West Frontier Province (NWFP). The provinces argued that the Kalabagh dam would benefit only the province of Punjab and undermine their interests.

The Diamer-Basha dam is Pakistan's first mega reservoir in nearly 30 years. The $6.5-billion project is part of Gen. Musharraf's `2016 water vision' that envisages construction of four more major dams — Kalabagh, Akori, Kuram Tangi and Munda dam.

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