The indolence behind desilting the indus

Every year the Sukkur barrage and its seven off taking canals are closed for fifteen days from January 6 to January 20 for repair and maintenance. Interestingly, the restoration only entails greasing the barrage gates and repairing the damaged blocks. In this period, desilting of the Indus and its off taking canals can also be carried out, but this has not been done over the last 20 years. As a result, tons of silt has accumulated, thus reducing the capacity of the river and canals to almost 50 percent.

Water shortage

The 15-day closure of the Sukkur barrage is a difficult time for those living in Sukkur and its adjoining areas. During this period, people suffer severe water shortage and are seen running from one hand pump to the other to get water for domestic needs. Despite timely information from barrage authorities, the municipal authorities always fail to take the necessary measures beforehand to avoid water shortage for the people.

Marine life

As the water level recedes in the river and its off taking canals due to closure of the barrage gates, it effects marine life. The rare Indus blind dolphin which cannot survive in shallow waters opt to move back to the upstream of the river, where they remain until the situation normalises. Unfortunately some of the dolphins that often slip into the shallow waters of the canals in search of food have to be rescued by the wildlife department and later released into deep water upstream of the Indus.

Most of the big fish manage to swim with the current into the deep water, while juvenile fish remain stranded in the river or canals. Taking advantage of this, the communities living near the Sukkur barrage catch lots of fish, which is sold in the local market or to roadside vendors.

“For a bigger catch, people add chemical to the shallow waters,” says Imran Malik, senior manager World Wild Fund, Sukkur. “Not only does the fish unfit for human consumption, the contaminated water endangers marine life. This was being done despite awareness campaigns by concerned authorities including Dolphin Conservation Centre and Wild Life Department, to protect marine life and especially the rare blind Indus dolphin. But relentless and continuous campaigning against this practice has helped to some extent and now most people living in the far flung katcha areas are being careful not to harm the blind dolphin or marine life in general.”

According to Mir Akhtar Talpur, the incharge of the Dolphin Conservation Centre, during the closure period of the gates of the Sukkur barrage for repair, the dolphin sense the danger of shallow waters and immediately move to the deep water behind the historic Sadh Belo temple or even closer to zero point. Other species that can survive in shallow water opt to remain there. He explained that last year just a few dolphin slipped into the canals, because after the heavy rains in August 2022, the canals mostly remained closed.

Annual barrage inspection

At midnight between January 5 and 6, when 11 gates of Sukkur barrage are raised up to allow water to flow downstream, the gates of seven off taking canals are closed to reduce the water level. As these gates remain under water throughout the year, it is necessary to dewater the river and canals for inspection of the gates and the concrete blocks for any kind of damage, which is promptly repaired while the gates are greased.

During the visit to Sukkur barrage, it was observed that the inspection work of the gates and concrete blocks was almost done and according to the barrage officials, no damage to the blocks was found. “During annual maintenance, the first step is the removal of silt that accumulates on the blocks and the cement pavement to ascertain that no damage has been caused,” says Abdul Aziz Soomro, incharge Sukkur barrage control room. “In 2004, a huge pit had developed near the Sukkur barrage gate number one and two, which was repaired, otherwise the main structure of the barrage could have been damaged.”

Desilting is due

According to a source in the irrigation department, on condition of anonymity, every year tons of silt accumulates in the river and canals, thus reducing their capacity to almost 50 percent. Despite the fact that millions of rupees are spent during the closure of the Sukkur barrage, it seems that the authorities are least concerned about the accumulation of silt, which must be removed at least once in five years. “Due to this reason the farmers continuously face water shortage,” the source says. “For example, a canal that is designed to carry 6000 cusecs of water can only carry 3000 cusecs due to heavy silt, and as a result, little or no water reaches the farmers.” He explained that the canals are the backbone of Sindh’s agriculture and irrigate around 8M acres of land in Sindh and Balochistan. This mismanagement however, leads to water scarcity for the farmers.

Soomro confirmed that last year desilting was done only in the Kirthar canal, and this year tons of silt has collected again. “The renovation and modernisation of the Sukkur barrage is on the cards with the support of the World Bank,” he says on an optimistic note. “Along with major repairs and maintenance, desilting of the river and its canals is also being planned to give a new lease of life to the barrage and the river’s off taking canals.

This year apparently during closure period of the Sukkur barrage, tons of silt that accumulated in different canals and the concrete pavements was not taken out of the canal, but left there to flush away with water current. This could lead to reduction in the capacity of the canals, as heavy silt hampers natural waterways.

Sukkur barrage is the agricultural lifeline for Sindh and large parts of Balochistan, but silt deposition in upstream areas causes the barrage gates to get blocked, the barrage which has a capacity of 1.5 cusecs starts overflowing when water exceeds 600,000 cusecs.

According to sources, until 1984, dredging was done upstream, which ensured that the river never overflowed the barrage gates.

Desilting of the River Indus is important for the sustainability of the river and its ecosystem. Unless the river bed is dredged and silt removed from the concrete part of the barrage, its capacity and efficiency will remain hampered. Lesser water for the farmers means Sindh’s food basket running short. Is the problem technical, financial or bureaucratic or is there a lack of sincerity in purpose?

Now would be the ideal time to get to the bottom of this and address the long-standing issue. Since it has significant benefits for Sindh’s food basket, the authorities can weigh the costs, complexities and benefits for desilting, find a practical and sustainable solution and not leave it for another year as a case of pure indolence.

Sarfaraz Memon is a freelance journalist and contributor based in Sukkur. All facts and information are the responsibility of the writer