DAWN.COM | Local | Sindh wants army called in as flood threat looms
Sindh wants army called in as flood threat looms
By Habib Khan Ghori
Saturday, 31 Jul, 2010
KARACHI: The Sindh government has sought an immediate deployment of the army to help deal with the situation arising out of the passage of what is being described as a super flood in the Indus river through the Guddu and Sukkur barrages and the irrigation network in a couple of days.
An emergency meeting of the Sindh cabinet has also been summoned for Saturday evening to discuss the looming threat and finalise measures to counter it.
The decision to seek assistance from the armed forces was taken at a high-level meeting held on Friday at the CMs House under the chairmanship of Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah. Several ministers and the secretaries concerned attended the meeting.
The meeting reviewed the current situation vis-à-vis the Indus and its vast irrigation network and a likely impact of the super flood. It was officially announced that floodwaters were expected to enter the Sindh territory sometime between Aug 2 and 3.
According to sources, a formal request was sent to the Corps V commander for necessary measures like arrangements for lifeboats and deployment of army personnel to help the local civil administrations in carrying out relief and rescue operations.
Irrigation Secretary Shuja Junejo is said to have informed the meeting that over 1,100,000 cusecs would pass through the barrages after entering the Indus from the Soan river and the Haro river.
He said that a similar situation had come about in 1995 when a super flood passed through the Indus. The maximum water flow at that time was recorded at 1,086,000 cusecs.
According to him, there are 148 vulnerable points where 24-hour vigilance has been ordered. He said prompt alert in case of soil erosion or breach would help the government carry out plugging work and avert loss of life and property.
Former irrigation secretary Idrees Rajput reportedly apprehended that floodwaters this time could prove to be more dangerous than before, as the condition and strength of embankments, protective bunds and bridges had not been checked for a long time. Nor had due attention been paid to their proper maintenance, he said.
The Sukkur barrage, built in 1932, has withstood a discharge of over 900,000 cusecs but the coming super flood will be a critical test of its strength with over 1,100,000 cusec discharge, according to sources.
Meanwhile, a handout issued on Friday said that the chief minister also got a briefing on the condition of various protective bunds and reviewed arrangements made by different departments towards meeting the challenge. He asked DCOs of vulnerable districts to make arrangements for the evacuation and shifting of people living in the kutcha areas along both sides of the Indus to safe places.
The meeting was informed that relief camps would be set up in school buildings to accommodate the evacuated people. It was told that food, water and medical treatment would be made available at the relief camps.
It was noted that the health department would make arrangements for mobile medical teams and set up camps for the affected families livestock, as well as veterinary doctors.