In this day and age of technology, we should speak on the basis of verifiable data, not on the basis of hearsay.
LAHORE: It is a pity that some editorials have come out in support of Sindh’s concern that the flow in the Indus will be reduced if the Kalabagh Dam is built. Dams are built the world over to overcome water shortages and not to create them. The Mangla Dam was built to compensate for the loss of the three eastern rivers and brought about a green revolution in the country. And this could not have happened if the flow in the Jhelum River was reduced. The Tarbela Dam increased water supply to the canal network by 25 per cent and, again, this could not have been done if the river’s water flow had reduced after the dam was built.
Sindh got an additional seven million acre feet of water as a result of the construction of the Tarbela Dam. In accordance with the Water Accord of 1991, Sindh stands to get 2.2 million acre feet from Kalabagh and to suggest that its water flow will be reduced is incorrect. Both of these statistics are not guesses but reliable estimates which can be verified with Sindh’s irrigation department as well.
In this day and age of technology, we should speak on the basis of verifiable data, not on the basis of hearsay.
Engr Khurshid Anwer
Published in The Express Tribune, December 4th, 2012.
