Construction Of A Hydroelectric Power Station With Hungarian Support
Szöveg: Lt. Levente Palotás | 2009. november 18. 7:48The troops of the HDF Provincial Reconstruction Team (HDF PRT) paid a visit to the village of Pulkah in Banu province on the occasion of the launch of an important project. They were invited to a great event in the life of the village, the opening ceremony of the construction of a new hydroelectric power station. In the village that is 120 kilometres from Pol-e Khumri, electricity supply has been a big problem for years.
There is only a mini hydroelectric power station to generate electricity for the village, supplying approximately 10 families with the required amount of energy at the same time, therefore access to electricity keeps rotating among the population. Now, with the support of the reconstruction team, the construction of a new power station with a larger capacity may begin, which will meet the energy requirements of more than 200 families.
The project, selected by the Hungarian contingent on the basis of the Provincial Reconstruction Plan as one of their developments to be implemented, will probably be completed in two months, so the people in the village can spend their long winter evenings by electric light. The local leaders, the contractor, the head of the sura, and on behalf of the Hungarian party, Lieutenant Colonel János Vokla, the deputy commander of the HDF PRT also attended the event that marked the laying of the foundation stone.
The large number of guests went to the bank of the river first, where they laid the stones symbolising the start of the project, and according to tradition, they cut the ribbon. Following that the locals invited the Hungarian soldiers to lunch, where they discussed the issues related to the everyday life of the village and the current situation in the country after the Afghan elections. After the warm hospitality and traditional Afghan dishes, the Hungarian visitors, upon the request of the leaders of the village, examined the site of one of the future projects. Then the soldiers said farewell to their hosts, and after travelling for four and a half hours, they got back to Camp Pannonia.
