[Buddha-l] Pakistan dam called off--Buddhist petroglyphs saved for now. Plus:

[JKirkpatrick]

Engaged Buddhism dept.: http://tinyurl.com/35u6zty

"...The reason is that the regime has for long been ignoring and
undermining the rights of the people of Gilgit-Baltistan simply
because they have shown strong resistance to the proposed dam for
it will submerge long tracks of scarce agricultural land in
Diamer District where food security has already become a major
issue. Secondly, it will displace more than 80,000 people of
Gilgit-Baltistan and their future status has not yet been
decided. And, there is no agreement yet on compensation plans.
Thirdly, the adverse implications of the dam on
socio-environmental conditions of Gilgit-Baltisatn have already
been acknowledged internationally. Fourthly, the construction
work would draw large numbers of outsiders to Gilgit-Baltistan
while under the 'state subject rule' outsiders are not allowed to
settle in the disputed regions. Fifthly, the proposed site of the
dam, according to the experts, is located in the sensitive
seismic zone, and any earthquake of the scale that struck Azad
Kashmir in 2005 would be disastrous for the entire region. ..."

I figure the Gilgit-Baltistan folks have already heard plenty
about what happened to those on the land (mostly poor and low
caste adivasis) when the Narmada Dam in India filled up.

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Bhasha Dam in Pakistan called off-----Buddhist petroglyphs saved
for now.
The petroglyph inscriptions date from the Epipaleolithic period
(15,000 to 10,000 BC) to the pre-Islamic "golden era" of Buddhism
(occuring most likely before 6th century AD). (I am skeptical of
the dating here.)  JK

Caption for the photo found here:  http://tinyurl.com/359f8b9 
 
In areas across northern Pakistan there are thousands of rock
engravings that date back more than 10,000 years.
Countless rock carvings and inscriptions can be found through
gorges and mountain passes in the Diamer District of Northern
Pakistan. These petroglyphs, or rock engravings, date as early to
the Epipaleolithic period and chronicle up their way in time to
the rise of Buddhism, making them a timeline of sorts for the
region.