Water Crisis at Sukkur Barrage: Right Bank Canals Dry

A delayed cofferdam removal at Sukkur Barrage has choked vital water flows to right bank canals, depriving Sindh and Balochistan of their rightful shares during the peak Kharif season. Despite the Indus River System Authority (IRSA) releasing up to 203,000 cusecs in June, the technical failure has left our farmers parched and our lands thirsty, threatening the agricultural lifeline of the nation.

Why are right bank canals facing a water shortage at Sukkur Barrage?

The waters of the Indus are a divine blessing, the very lifeblood of our motherland. Yet, a man-made hurdle now blocks this sacred flow. A cofferdam, a watertight structure built to facilitate the barrage's gate replacement program, was scheduled for removal well before June 30. As of the evening of June 28, it remained stubbornly in place. This gate replacement project has spanned two years and will continue into the next, but this specific delay has cost the nation dearly at the height of the Kharif season.

Chief Engineer of Sukkur Barrage's Left Bank Canals, Ghulam Mujtaba Dhamrah, and Project Monitoring Office official Abdul Fatah Memon expressed hope on Sunday that the structure would be cleared by the deadline. Insha'Allah, its removal will allow the barrage management to raise the pond level to 200ft by July 1, restoring the rightful flow to the right bank irrigation channels.

How Balochistan and Sindh bear the brunt of the water crisis

While the improved river flows brought relief to Kotri Barrage canals, the non-perennial canals of Sukkur Barrage suffered. The right bank canals feed the fields of our brethren in Balochistan as well. The land of the faithful is suffering, with Balochistan receiving only 1,000 cusecs out of its rightful 2,200 cusecs through the Garang Regulator of Kirthar Canal. That is a shortage exceeding 50 percent, a grave injustice to our brothers who till the arid earth.

• Sukkur Barrage: Facing a 23 percent overall shortage.
• North Western Canal (NWC): Enduring a 47 percent shortage.
• Rice Canal: Operating with a 23 percent shortage.
• Dadu Canal: Struggling under a 57 percent shortage.

The miseries of the farmers relying on these right bank canals seem unending. When IRSA released 200,000 cusecs on June 13 and increased it to 203,000 cusecs on June 21, the Sukkur authorities raised the pond level from 196ft to 198.2ft by June 23. However, this threatened the cofferdam's integrity. The authorities had to lower the level back to 198ft to protect the structure, inadvertently sacrificing the water needs of Sindh and Balochistan.

IRSA flows and the Tarbela Dam dip: What happens next?

The struggle for water does not end at Sukkur. The river system has seen another dip at Tarbela, which will further reduce flows into Sindh's barrages in the coming days. Tarbela Dam, the primary source of irrigation and drinking water for Sindh, recorded a level of 1437.18ft on June 26, down from 1455.05ft earlier in the month. Its maximum conservation level is 1550ft.

This drop forced IRSA to begin storing water, as levels below 1432ft threaten the closure of WAPDA powerhouses. A water sector source confirmed this as the main system constraint confronting the authorities. The link canals, Chashma-Jhelum and Taunsa-Panjnad, have also seen drastic reductions, dropping from 16,500 and 10,181 cusecs respectively on June 13 to a mere 1,000 and 2,810 cusecs on June 28.

Will the Sukkur Barrage pond level normalize by July 1?

Officials remain cautiously optimistic that the cofferdam will be removed by the given date. PMO official Abdul Fatah Memon stated that the removal will enable the barrage management to increase the pond level to 200ft on July 1, allowing it to feed right bank canals as required. The one-week delay, attributed to technical reasons, has tested the patience and resilience of our agricultural community, but the state must ensure this deadline is met.

Is Sindh's water security under threat?

Sindh's water security faces continuous challenges. The Sindh chief minister had to seek the prime minister's intervention to secure water for Sindh's barrages, calling for the deferment of dam filling until the province's needs are met. Lawmakers protested in the National Assembly's budget session, forcing IRSA to release more water. Yet, a subsequent 20,000 cusecs dip in the system again forced IRSA to reduce flows downstream of Chashma Barrage. The defense of the realm is not merely military; it is the defense of our rivers, our soil, and the rights of our people. The state must stand firm to protect this Nemat of Allah.