Sindh govt ‘hopes’ to repair dykes by July 15

Minister downplays questions on the quality of work done at Tori.

HYDERABAD:

By July 15, the government hopes to complete 90% of repairs on the embankments of the Indus River that were damaged in last year’s floods, said Sindh Irrigation Minister Jam Saifullah Dharejo.

The work, which already began later than scheduled, in February, was delayed because the money was not sent in time. The original deadline was June 30.

“We have good leverage. As there is no imminent flood threat, we are taking time to ensure quality,” said the minister at a press conference at the Sindh Irrigation and Drainage Authority (SIDA) secretariat this weekend.

Pressure is being applied from the top to the bottom. In a meeting with Federal Minister Naveed Qamar, the centre sent the message that the Sindh government would face strict action if the work was not finished by July 15. The Sindh irrigation ministry sought an estimated Rs52 billion from the centre.

“The department received Rs1 billion from Sindh, later to be reimbursed by the centre,” said Dharejo. “Later, the centre gave us Rs2.5 billion more, although we were promised Rs5 billion last fiscal year.” A sum of Rs14 billion, for 64 urgent schemes, was approved on January 22.

Sindh is also in the process of acquiring a loan of Rs14 billion from the Asian Development Bank (ADB), which will be also repaid by the federal government, he added.

It is not clear how much is actually required to reconstruct the ravaged irrigation infrastructure. The minister downplayed questions on the quality of work done at Tori, Kot Almo, Aqil Aaghani and other bunds. “The federal minister did not say that stone pitching at Tori was poor. He said ‘the entire span of the area has not been covered yet’,” Dharejo said while answering a question.

The Aqil Aghani dyke in Larkana has been repaired and strengthened with new spurs. The government has yet to make a policy for the inhabitants of Katcha (riverside) areas. “They will have to evacuate if the flood strikes again,” he minister added.

Although there are no official figures about the population in Katcha areas in Sindh, during last year’s flood around 25,000 people from 35 villages were affected in Hyderabad district alone, according to DCO Aftab Ahmed Khatri. This is less than other districts in the province.

“The repair of Sehrish Nagar, Latifabad, Unit 4 and Ghalyan dykes is still not complete,” said the director of the Left Bank Area Water Board, Habib Ursani. The 25-mile area under the board’s jurisdiction starts from Ghalyan in Matiari to Latifabad Unit 12, in Hyderabad.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 4^th, 2011.