May 3, 2002	Friday	Safar 19, 1423

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window)

ISLAMABAD, May 2: The specification of controversial Thal Flood Water Canal project is not in line with the design capacity as envisaged in the 1991 Water Accord, an official source said.

The inconsistency was pointed out at a briefing of Irsa members by Punjab Consultant M.H. Siddique and officials of Wapda over the Thal Flood Canal and Satpara dam projects here on Thursday, the source said.

Punjab seeking certification of Thal Flood Canal project from Irsa as mandated by the Water Accord informed the authority members that the capacity of the canal would be 8,500 cusecs, he added.

Whereas the accord had envisioned a flood canal having a capacity of 5,900 cusecs for irrigating southern waste land of Punjab.

Besides this glaring inconsistency the officials of Punjab government and Wapda failed to address other reservations of Sindh on the project.

The work on the project had already been initiated by Wapda which had been approved by ECNEC earlier this year amidst protest by the province of Sindh.

Later the issue was taken up at the level of the Chief Executive who asked Wapda and Punjab government to address objections raised by Sindh government and fulfil the legal formality of Irsa certification.