Plan afoot to enhance Rawal Dam’s capacity

Four-member committee formed to submit recommendations

RAWALPINDI:

In a bid to increase the storage capacity of Rawal Dam – the main source of water for the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad - the Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) and the Small Dam Organisation (SDO) are devising a joint strategy to cater to the growing water needs of residents.

This was disclosed by a spokesperson for WASA who also said the dam constructed in 1962 has lost half of its capacity to silting.

He said Rawalpindi Development Authority Chairman Tariq Mehmood Murtaza during a meeting formed a committee to give recommendations to increase the storage capacity of the Ayub-era dam.

With the completion of the proposed project, the Rawal Dam, which currently provides 23 million gallons of water per day (MGD) to the garrison city would provide 50 to 60 MGD.

The spokesman also said the government wanted to increase the water storage capacity from 30,000 acrefeet to 68,000 acre-feet to cater to the needs of the garrison city for the next 50 years at least.

He said during the huddle, the participants discussed various proposals to increase the existing capacity of the dam including desilting, increasing the height of the dam by over five feet and constructing a dam upstream.

The official said, however, one option with maximum dividends would be opted by a team of experts. The spokesman said that a technical committee consisting of officers from the irrigation department and WASA was formed to prepare the TORs of the project.

The committee would submit its report to the chairman within one week and a plan would be submitted to the Punjab government for final approval, he added. He quoted the RDA chairman as saying that considering the future water requirements of Rawalpindi city, this project would be of great importance.

He added that the underground water level was depleting day by day and it has already reached an alarming level, making dependence on the dam inevitable. The project would not only provide a sufficient quantity of water at a low cost but also help keep the environment safe, he said