ISLAMABAD, June 29: The Indus River System Authority (Irsa) has constituted a three-member special committee to resolve an armed standoff between the Balochistan and Sindh governments over two canals — Kirthar and Saifullah Magsi. Reliable sources told Dawn on Wednesday that Balochistan had been accusing Sindh of water theft and depriving it of quantities approved by Irsa for over 15 days now.

The situation turned sour when Balochistan irrigation authorities accompanied by Baloch Levies opened the gates of Kirthar canal and closed the gates of Saifullah Magsi canal on Monday.

However, Sindh irrigation authorities on Tuesday deputed its police force on both the canals and reopened Saifullah Magsi canal and closed the gates of Kirthar canal.

Both the canals are situated on the border of Sindh and Balochistan. Balochistan gets irrigation water from the Kirthar canal while the Saifullah Magsi canal provides water to Sindh.

The dispute was brought to the notice of Irsa. Irsa considered various options as to who should be sent for an on-site inspection to resolve the issue.

Irsa members from the NWFP, Punjab and the federal government declined to visit the site owing to the tense situation while Balochistan and Sindh members opposed their visit for being indirect parties to the dispute.

Irsa then approached the Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) to confirm whether it would be able to send some senior officials for site inspection. Wapda obliged to the request and nominated its chief engineer hydrology and water management and a senior engineer.

Based on the Wapda nomination, Irsa constituted a three-member committee comprising the above-mentioned Wapda officials and a senior engineer of Irsa to visit the Kirthar, Saifullah Magsi and Sukkur areas between July 1 and 4. The committee has been asked to submit a report within a week so that appropriate steps could be taken to defuse the situation and provide justice to the aggrieved party.

Besides, the irrigation departments of Sindh and Balochistan have also been asked to cooperate with the three-member committee during its visit.

The report will also be presented to the ministry of water and power and the prime minister’s secretariat so that an assessment could be made.