Kalabagh Dam for financing assistance, but due to strained relations with Afghanistan (a Soviet ally), this request was denied. The government then approached the World Bank, which agreed to finance the project. At this point in Pakistan's history, previous dam projects such as Mangla (under Ayub Khan) and Tarbela (under Zulfikar Ali Bhutto) never faced any opposition. Even Kalabagh was approved by the Central Development Working Party, without dissent. The issue of Kalabagh started to become politicized after the execution of the former Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, a highly popular leader from the downstream province of Sindh. Adding to the controversy,
Mangla razed to the ground (with construction of Mangla Dam), is used for a wide area which includes Mangla Cantonment, Mangla Colony (Left bank WAPDA Colony) and Mangla Hamlet. The village Mangla itself was named after Mangla Devi, a goddess of Hindu worship. It has been narrated to be the site of the crossing of the Jhelum river by the forces of Alexander the great facing King Porus. At the time of construction of the Mangla Dam, the villages of Thill, Baral and Baruti across the river in Jhelum District were developed as residential colonies and offices for foreign workers and