$2.58m slated for approval by ECC for slain Chinese workers in Dasu terror attack

• Compensation of Rs2.5m also recommended for slain Pakistani.
• 5 Chinese workers, 1 Pakistani were killed in attack on March 26.
• Inter-Ministerial Committee recommends compensation amount ECC.
  

ISLAMABAD: A $2.58 million compensation package is set to be approved by the government for the employees of a Chinese company who were killed in the terror attack on March 26 in Dasu.

A senior official of the Cabinet Division told The News that the Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) is likely to greenlight the package in its next meeting.

The committee's secretariat has also received a summary seeking $2.58 million in compensation for the five Chinese employees of China Gezhouba, a contractor company working on the Dasu Hydropower project.

The Inter-Ministerial Committee (IMC) has recommended the compensation amount to the ECC based on the GDP per capita and purchasing power parity.

A compensation of Rs2.5 million has also been recommended for a Pakistani national who was killed in the same attack.

The amount will be transferred to the account of the Pakistan embassy in Beijing, which will then transfer the payments to the families of the victims via appropriate channels.

The IMC's recommendations came almost two months after a terror attack in Shangla claimed the lives of at least six people — five Chinese engineers and one Pakistani — working on the Dasu Dam, earlier this week.

The victims were killed when an explosive-laden vehicle hit the bus carrying them on the Karakoram Highway in the Bisham area.

Following the attack, civil work at the sites of the Dasu and Diamer-Bhasha Dams was temporarily suspended by the Chinese companies overseeing operations due to security concerns.

Approximately 991 Chinese engineers were working on both projects, while the local staff was told to stay at home till further instructions.

Reacting to the deadly attack, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesperson Lin Jian termed the terror bid an attempt to sabotage China-Pakistan relations.

"Beijing remains firm in its commitment to working with Islamabad in various fields," the official said.