KARACHI, Aug 23: Water from the Hub Dam reservoir, which attained its maximum conservation capacity of 339 feet on Wednesday night, has started overflowing towards the Arabian Sea through its 6,020-foot long spillway.
Terming the monsoon rains a “boon for both Karachi and Balochistan’s Lasbella district,” Wapda’s Resident Engineer Inamullah Khan told Dawn that the water available in the dam’s reservoir would be sufficient to cater to the needs of both Karachi and Lasbella for two years even if they continue to maintain their present supply level of 100 and 59 million gallons of water per day (mgd), respectively.
Asked if the flash floods caused in the wake of the dam’s spillage resulted in any damage to the lives and properties of those living along the huge spillway area, he replied in the negative. He said that all those villagers who had been living along the dam’s spillway had moved to safer places much earlier as Wapda, through an advisory sent to the administrations of both Karachi and Balochistan, had warned them shortly after the current monsoon season had begun.
To another query he said that the water level in the reservoir on Thursday night was 340.5 RL (reservoir level) and rainwater was still pouring in because it has a huge catchment area comprising Dadu district and Kirthar National Park in Sindh and Daruna, Duraji and Shah Noorani in Balochistan.
It was for the seventh time that the dam’s reservoir had spilled since it became operational in 1981. Water from the dam’s reservoir had earlier spilled in 1984, 1989, 1992, 1994, 1995 and lastly in 2003.
Tracing the history of the Hub Dam, Mr Khan said that construction of the dam had begun in 1963 but it was commissioned in June 1981. It is since then that both beneficiaries had been drawing water from the dam to meet their requirements.
“Four consecutive dry monsoon seasons had resulted in the drying up of the dam’s reservoir; as such water supply to both Karachi and Lasbella had come to a complete halt in July 1999,” he said. Water supply was, however, restored in August 2001 as the catchment area received considerable rainfall, he added.
Water supply to both beneficiaries was once again stopped in October 2002 and remained so until the first week of June 2003.
Elaborating, he said that water supply from the dam is made available to Karachi through the Hub pumping station managed by the KWSB after water flows into a 19-mile long canal.
Wapda had been maintaining a five mile section of the canal since it handed over the remaining portion of the canal to the KWSB in 2002.
