KARACHI:
The recent heavy rains and floods in the lower areas of Sindh and Balochistan have once again highlighted the dire need for constructing dams at appropriate places in the country. A huge amount of water — which could have been stored — was wasted into the Arabian Sea just for want of dams. It goes without saying that the saved water would have helped us boost our agricultural produce as well as energy and power sector.
The Sindh River is the country’s largest, running through the northern region and Punjab and ending at the Arabian Sea. During the monsoon season, all rivers of Pakistan burst up at their banks, flooding a vast area. To add to the problem, our hostile neighbour also opens the floodgates on its side to allow gushing water to make way into our side. This uncontrollable flow of water destroys the plains in Punjab and Sindh, resulting in the loss of innocent lives and damage to infrastructure and fertile lands almost every year.
In the light of above facts, one must insist on the construction of dams on an urgent basis. Kalabagh in Punjab is the best location for building a big dam which would be multi-purpose. Unfortunately, the issue has been politicised, and the provinces have not been able to build consensus on it. Even the military dictator Pervez Musharraf could not dare go about constructing a dam at Kalabagh. Our leadership must now learn from the devastation of the recent monsoon, especially in view of the exacerbating climate crisis, and talk out the issue in the larger national interest.
Gohar Awan
Khushab
Published in The Express Tribune, August 4th, 2022.
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