ISLAMABAD, April 10: The advisory committee of the Indus River System Authority on Monday failed to finalise water distribution plan and criteria for filling reservoirs for the current Kharif season.

The committee, however, agreed to consider water probabilities worked out by its technical committee for Kharif distribution plan and criteria for filling reservoirs. Water probabilities (including eastern rivers) were calculated at 111.9 million area-feet in the Indus Basin system.

Irsa Chairman Shafqat Masood presided over the meeting attended by all the members of the authority and representatives of provincial irrigation departments and the Water and Power Development Authority.

The outcome of the meeting was presented to Adviser on Water and Power Riaz Ahmad Khan.

Sources told Dawn that the advisory committee rejected Sindh’s demand for distribution of Kharif water under Paragraph two of the accord and decided to distribute it among the provinces on the basis of a formula agreed with consensus by Irsa in 2003. The three tier formula was never made public.

The formula reportedly entailed that water availability of up to 105MAF be shared on the basis of historic uses under Paragraph 14(b) of the accord, followed by application of Paragraph two and then Paragraph four for over 117MAF of water availability.

The provincial shares of irrigation water in the season will become clear when Irsa decides about the distribution plan and dam filling criteria on the basis of water withdrawal plans to be submitted by the provinces.

The meeting asked the provinces to submit their water plans within a week.

The committee was told that the Sindh irrigation department would submit its position on distribution of water in writing, sources claimed. The sources said Punjab and Irsa had calculated water probability for Kharif below 112MAF, while Sindh insisted that availability of 112MAF worked out by technical committee should be endorsed. On the other hand, Balochistan proposed that a medium approach be adopted as total availability would be about 105MAF.