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India bringing about a change in war-torn Afghanistan
Published on Sun, Jul 20, 2008 at 01:39, Updated at Sun, Jul 20, 2008 in World section
Tags: India, Afghanistan
REBUILDING A NATION: They say in the streets of Kabul, India lives in the hearts of every Afghan.
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India offers $ 450 million more in aid to Afghanistan
Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai is on a two-day visit to India.
They say in the streets of Kabul, India lives in the hearts of every Afghan.
“They say Indians are like brothers to them,” says Guruswamy, an Indian Engineer who works KEC International in Afghanistan.
Indians are bringing in visible change in Afghanistan. The Government of India has almost completed work on a 200-kilometre transmission line, which will bring in power from Central Asia to Kabul. The 220-kilovolt double-circuit power transmission line from Pul-e-Khumri to Kabul will draw power from Uzbekistan to Afghanistan.
“NEPS will import power from Uzbekistan. Kabul will get power by October,” says GM, Powergrid Corporation of India, Afghanistan, V Shekhar.
The Power Grid Corporation of India is building the most challenging part of the transmission line — the part that goes over the avalanche-prone Hindukush Mountains.
“Tower spotting was a difficult task. We had to also be careful about mines,” Shekhar says.
Kabul has faced years of acute power shortage. But next month, relief could come through 700 pre-fabricated towers shipped all the way from India.
The transmission line from Pul-e-Khumri to Kabul is one of the most important infrastructure projects that India has undertaken in the war-ravaged country.
Near Salang, where the transmission line is 4,000 metres above sea level, Afghan workers and Indian engineers extend cables from one tower to another. Indian engineers have specially designed these towers and transmission lines to withstand extreme weather.
At Chimtala, near Kabul, Bharat Heavy Electricals Limited is in charge of the sub-station part of a $ 110 million project. The ambitious project has received threats from various terror outfits. But Indian officials in charge say none have been carried out, perhaps due to the goodwill India enjoys in the area.
“India has provided great assistance to Afghanistan. They are doing their best after US,” says Managing Editor, Pahjwok News Agency, Farida Nekhzad.
At the Afghanistan-India Vocational Training Centre set up by the Confederation of Indian Industries, signs of change that India is bringing in are visible. Modelled on the Industrial Training Institutes in India, these centres in Kabul are training Afghans to take part in rebuilding their country.
“I will set up a carpentry workshop once my training is over. My country was destroyed in the war. Now there are many opportunities available for those who can take part in the reconstruction economy. This institute is a boon for us. As a professional carpenter I can earn 60,000 to 90,000 thousand Afghani,” says Ashmitullah, a carpentry apprentice at the institute.
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