950815

Indus at high

peak at Kotri:

no cause for

alarm

HAFEEZ SHAIKH

HYDERABAD: River Indus is flowing in high peak at Kotri Barrage but according to Irrigation Department there was no cause for alarm.

During the last 48 hours, an increase of 48201 cusec was recorded at upstream and 48995 cusec at downstream. The total discharge of water at Kotri Barrage at 6 p.m. on Tuesday was recorded at 959465 cusec upstream and 732252 downstream. The water gauge was recorded at 23.8 while at Dadu-Moro bridge the water gauge was recorded at 131.25 percent. At Dholla bridge, Thatta-Sujawal, the water gauge was recorded at 33 percent.

According to the Flood Control Centre, Jamshoro, no more than 25,000 cusec increase in the level of Indus water was expected during the next 24 hours as the water level had already started receding at Dadu-Moro bridge since Tuesday morning.

The duty engineer told Business Recorder that the designed capacity of Kotri Barrage was 875000 cusec and added that the present peak was much below the designed capacity. He said all the protective bunds were quite safe and there was no cause for alarm as all the vulnerable points had been strengthened.

However, some erosion in the protective bund near Matiari and Khyber did take place last night as a result of which the pressure mounted on the protective bunds because of strong winds.

The incharge of the protective bunds, Sindh Minister for Food Mohsin Shah Bukhari rushed to the spot and with the help of hundreds of villagers, irrigation staff and army personnel, the erosion was immediately controlled and the bund was strengthened with sand bags and stones.

The pressure is now on the Sorjani bund in Thatta district but the irrigation officials claim that the bund was strong enough to withstand the pressure.

Meanwhile, round the clock vigil is being kept on the protective bunds and the leaves of all irrigation personnel has been cancelled.

Sindh Minister for Irrigation and Power Haji Zafar Ali Khan Leghari also visited the protective bunds and expressed satisfactory over the work there.

The tidal waves of the sea had created some difficulties since the 14th Rabi-ul-Awwal, but the sea water has receded and there is no hindrance to the normal flow of the River Indus into the Arabian Sea.

HIGH FLOOD IN

GUDDU BARRAGE

APP adds: River Indus after experiencing super flood stage twice last week, was flowing in high flood at Guddu with a discharge of 6,58,800 cusec recorded at 6 a.m. on Tuesday. According to Irrigation Department the river will fall further at this gauging station during the next 24 hours. At Sukkur the river was flowing in "very high flood" stage with a discharge of 7 lakh cusec and will fall further during the next 24 hours.

FLOOD DAMAGES

PPI adds: About 15,000 acres of cropped area have been affected while damages worth Rs 75 million caused to the people due to heavy rains and floods in Larkana district so far, according to initial estimates. A total of 50 villages in the district were affected, 15000 persons displaced over an area of one lakh acres. Two persons were reported to have died in the district. Nearly 1000 Kutcha houses were damaged while another 1,000 huts demolished. The local administration provided relief to 3500 affected families on camps set up at various bunds. In addition 9,300 packets of ration were also supplied to them from July 24 to August 5.

A total of five mobile camps and one field dispensaries are providing treatment to the affected families in the district. Moreover, 12 veterinary camps are also functioning. In Jacobabad district, 31 villages and 15975 people have been affected so far due to floods and heavy rains. Cropped area of over 3756 acres has also been affected, a total of 3430 houses were damaged while 200 houses demolished. In district Shikarpur, 16 villages and 1114 people while cropped areas over 1635 acres have been affected. Houses damaged were 147 and an equal number demolished in various parts of the district.

IBRD TEAM

A World Bank team is expected to visit Pakistan next month to assess the flood related devastation in the four provinces of Pakistan, CNN reported Tuesday.

"It will also assess the damage which the economic infrastructure has received," said CNN while running a documentary about the recent flood in Pakistan.

The World Bank can then decide, what assistance Pakistan needed to fight the after-affects of flood.

Both President Farooq Khan Leghari and Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, CNN said, visited the flood-hit areas to give solace to the victims. It showed both the leaders hopping over the flood affected areas of the country.

CNN said, "donors are reluctant to provide relief because of reports that tens of thousands of million dollars were misused," in 1992, during the previous regime.