Socioeconomic conflicts and land-use issues in context of infrastructural projects The example of Diamer Basha Dam project in Pakistan

Conflicts of infrastructure associated with land-use changes happen in various forms among different stakeholders and disturb them socially and economically. The article takes into account the case study of Diamer Bhasha dam in Pakistan and examines the various issues and factors responsible for socioeconomic disturbances of affected people and generation of conflicts among different stakeholders. Both primary and secondary data are collected and analyzed. Interviews with experts and stakeholders of different backgrounds are conducted as primary source to collect information on desired factors/issues. Further, different articles from national and regional dailies are studied on selected issues as a secondary source. Then, multiple correspondence analyses are used to explore the patterns of categorical variables, and the results reveal the existence of two main groups of opponents, with different status, visions, and interests. The discussion highlights the weaknesses and flaws of different project activities and their impacts on affected population. It also exemplifies the very confronting perceptions of stakeholders in several fields: change in living condition, employment, compensation amount, opposition based on property rights, mismanagement and corruption. Finally, we provide conclusions about our study.