Dams help us to produce a chain of economic, environmental, and social privileges, including recreation, flood control, water supply, hydroelectric power, waste control, river navigation, and wildlife habitat.
As specified by the International Commission on Large Dams, there are 150 dams and reservoirs in Pakistan (over 15 m in height). Pakistan holds home to two of the largest dams on the globe, Tarbela and Mirani Dam. Tarbela is the second largest dam according to the anatomical volume and the largest earth-filled dam. Mirani Dam is the largest dam based on the volume of flood protection.
List of famous reservoirs and dams in Pakistan.
- Diamer-Bhasha Dam
- Gomal Zam Dam Project
- Hub Dam
- Mangla Dam
- Mirani Dam
- Namal Dam
- Rawal Dam
- Tarbela Dam
- Warsak Dam
- Neelum Jhelum Dam
- Sabakzai Dam
Diamer Bhasha Dam
The Diamer Bhasha Dam is a concrete-filled gravity Dam, located on the Indus River, Gilgit Baltistan. It is still in its initial stages of construction. The name Diamer Basha is based on the area Bhasha in the Diamer District of Gilgit-Baltistan.
Once finished, The Diamer-Bhasha Dam will be suitable to produce Hydroelectricity of 4500 MW. Along with it, the dam will be capable of stocking 8,500,000 acre-feet extra of water that will be used for drinking and irrigation needs of the country. Also, this dam will have enough power to control flood damages during high floods by River Indus and can extend the longevity of Tarbela Dam.
In October 2011, then-Prime Minister of Pakistan, Yousaf Raza Gillani laid the establishing stone. After completion, This Diamer-Bhasha Dam is set to be the World’s highest RCC (Roller-compacted concrete) Dam.
Gomal Zam Dam
Gomal Zam Dam is a multi-function dam which is situated in the South Waziristan Agency of FATA, Pakistan. Crossed from a narrow gap in Khjori Kach, The dam is located on the waters of Gomal River. However, The primary objective of the Gomal Zam Dam is generating Hydroelectric Power, Irrigation, and Flood Control. The dam’s production process started in August 2001 and was completed after ten endeavoring years in April 2011. The PowerHouse units of the Dam finished in March 2013 and didn’t start producing electricity till August 2013.
Although, the government plans were to build the dam in 1963. The construction of the Dam was approved as well and initial work took place. But, because of the Indo-Pak 1965 War, the construction of the Dam had to be put on hold. Later, General Pervaiz Musharraf, President of Pakistan gave the green light for the construction of the Dam in 2001. Therefore, on Independence Day 14 August 2001, the starting of the construction ceremony took place.
With the depth of 133 m of Gomal Zam Dam, is an RCC (Roller-Compacted Concrete) Gravity Dam and is capable of generating electricity of 17.4 MW.
The Hub Dam located on the Hub River is a water reservoir. The Dam spreads across the border of Balochistan and Sindh, in Districts of Lasbela and Karachi approximately 56 KM distant from Karachi. With a gross storage range of 85700 acre-feet, makes this Dam the third largest one of Pakistan and It serves as the main source of drinking water for the city of Karachi.
The area surrounding the Dam was deemed as a Wildlife Sanctuary in 1974 by the Sindh Government. This place has become a well-known tourist point for the people of Karachi, as they hit this spot on the weekends to enjoy a picnic and fish with family or friends. Besides, there is a rest house by WAPDA situated there for the tourists.
Mangla Dam is regarded as the second-largest water reservoir in Pakistan. Cloaking in at an astonishing 147 meters in height and 3140 meters in length. It is located in the Mirpur District of Azad Kashmir.
The process of construction of the dam started in 1961 and ended in 1967, with the dam becoming a key source of irrigation in the homeland. Initially, the Dam was built for water storage but then, later to be modified to produce hydropower electricity. And now it’s the ninth-largest dam in the world.
Mangla Dam resulted in the formulation of the Mangla Lake. The lake attracts many tourists and its surroundings offer loads of water sports activities, including boating, rafting, jet skiing, and fishing, along with enjoying a picnic in the park near the lake.
Mirani Dam is acknowledged as the largest dam in the world in terms of volume for flood protection and control. Its 302,000 acre-feet reservoir is supplied by the Kech and the Nihing River. The dam’s construction started in 2002 and was completely built till July 2006. It is located on the Dasht River in Balochistan, with a height of 39 meters and a length of 1,020 meters. The expense to create this dam was about 5267.90 Million Pakistani Rupees.
Namal Dam is located in a crossing of Namal Valley in Mianwali, Punjab. The Dam was constructed in 1913 before Pakistan came into being. As Namal Lake owns a surface area of 5.5 square kilometers, the region is surrounded by mountains along with agricultural plains.
The sole purpose of making the dam was to provide a means of irrigation for the local farmlands but it now serves as a renowned picnic point for the people of the area. Migratory birds crowd to the area, drawing birdwatchers, while boating fanatics also test the streams here. Namal Lake is also one of the four vacation spots that have been chosen for further advancement within Punjab, which will attract more tourists to the region.
Rawal Dam supplies water to the cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad since 1962. It gathers water from the Korang River and other small streams that flow down the Margalla Hills.
The Rawal Lake is a popular tourist spot along with Margalla Hills, with a beautiful park around the lake with dense trees, paths, and picnic points. The park’s highest point also appears to have a marvelous view of the Rawal Lake, Margalla Hills, and the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
Swimming, boating, sailing, diving, and water skating are some of the activities that can be organized here using private tours. Many different types of birds, mammals, and reptiles also reside in this area, and birdwatchers often gather to Rawal Dam to see the beautiful local birds. The lake is also a very enriched fishing spot, as it’s stated to have around 15 different species in its waters.
Tarbela Dam is the largest dam in Pakistan. The dam is situated on the Indus River in the small town of Tarbela, Haripur District. It is the second-largest on earth in terms of structural volume.
The construction of this dam was started in 1968 and was formed in 1976 at a cost of $1,497 million. Moreover, it is 143.26 meters or 470ft in height and 2,743.2 meters or 9,000 ft. in length. Additionally, the total capacity of the dam is 13.69 cubic km spread over the construction area of 168,000 Km2.
Warsak Dam is surely on the list of the Famous Dams of Pakistan. The dam is located on Kabul River in the north-west of Peshawar, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. The Warsak Dam Hydropower Project can generate 243 MW of electricity. It has gone through two major stages of completion. The first phase was completed in 1960, while the second one ranged from 1980 to 1981.
The total height of Warsak Dam is 76.2m with a length of 140.2m. The total cost spent on production was 156 million rupees.
Neelum Jhelum Dam
Hydroelectric Power Scheme is to create a run-of-the-river Neelum Jhelum Hydropower Plant. Specifically intended to control and change the direction of water to the power station on Jhelum River from Neelum river. The initial stages to the creation of this dam were started In July 2007, after the Chinese company got the contract to construct the Dam, and work commenced in 2008 on the plant. However, the project hesitated for many years and eventually, in April 2018, the first generator came to operations.
Situated in Azad Jammu and Kashmir of Pakistan, this Power Plant stands around 26 mi (42 Km) south of Muzaffarabad. It can create hydroelectricity of 969 MW.
However, on 14 August 2018, the Fourth and last power unit started producing electricity and reached the maximum capacity of 969 MW. So, the whole plan was completed in August 2018.
Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, aquaculture, and navigability. The following were the most memorable and significant dams of Pakistan and everything you needed to know about them.