WORK on the Right Bank Outfall Drain-II is virtually at a standstill for want of funds, while the held up revised project cost proposed by the Sindh government is awaiting approval of the Planning Commission of Pakistan.

The allocation under the previous revised cost of Rs29bn has been fully utilised. According to a project officer, work came to a halt around three to four months back. He explained that the delay in cost revision is taking time due to procedural formalities, including approvals at different forums.

The second revised project cost (PC-I) of RBOD at around Rs64.66bn was forwarded by the Sindh government to the Planning Commission of Pakistan (PC) in 2015, in response to a set of observations made by the National Engineering Services of Pakistan (Nespak).

The provincial government has been given to understand that the second PC-I would be approved by the federal government

The project has already missed two deadlines. It kicked-off in 2001 to be completed in January 2006. The second deadline was missed in December 2014, which led to cost overruns.

Nespak’s observations were technical in nature regarding the RBOD’s outfall structure, third party evaluation and various drain reaches getting closer to the River Indus.

“The drains in these reaches are vulnerable to floods in the Indus, as seen in the flood of 2010-11. These reaches may be threatened during flood seasons.

“On the basis of quantum of work and a requirement of verification of quantities and expenditures, a provision for TPM on the executed work, by some independent consultant, should be included in the second revised PC-I”.

Project sources said observations — responded in para-wise comments — mentioned that TPM was being carried out by the army’s 5-Corps headquarters through project support and a monitoring team.

As far as the drain’s vulnerability due to floods is concerned, spurs have been recommended to keep the river’s direction away from the existing channel. With the spurs’ construction, the river would not directly hit the channel. Stone lining was extensively used in bund for flood protection at identified locations.

About the outfall structure, the authorities say it was kept intact and an amount of Rs1,583.67m was also provided in PC-I of 2015.

Another reason for delays in RBOD-II is land acquisition. Around 17pc of land (1,554 acres) that falls in right of way (RoW) of the project is yet to be acquired, involving an acquisition cost of Rs3bn.

Some landowners have gone to court and cases are pending for adjudication. The cost envisaged in 2005 initially has increased manifold. Of the 8,745 acres needed for the drain, 7,191 acres have been acquired.

The RBOD-II project is considered vital for rehabilitation of Asia’s largest fresh water lake — Manchar — which receives contaminated water of the RBOD-I — which is commonly known as Main Nara Valley Drain (MNVD). Project officials claim that 70pc of the overall three reaches of the project, but for piecemeal work, has been completed.

Project authorities are now focussing on the reach-III falling in Thatta, and mainly covering the tail-end of the drain. While the Frontier Works Organisation (FWO) is the project’s principal contractor, others are engaged by the Pakistan Railways, the National Highway Authority and the provincial highways department to build bridges and nullah crossings.

The second revision was proposed by the Sindh irrigation department after the 2015 floods. PC officials visited the site from Sehwan in Jamshoro to Gharo, Thatta district where the project’s outfall structure would dispose of effluent into the Arabian Sea.

The drain’s capacity to carry wastewater was revised to 3,525 cusec from 2,271 cusec following directives of the then premier, Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali, who wanted the drain to carry Balochistan’s wastewater.

Initially, the Sindh government had revised the cost to Rs71bn and sent it to the PC. The PC, said a project source, reverted it, advising the Sindh government to go for cost rationalisation.

After necessary modification and amendments, it was revised to Rs64.66bn. The provincial government has been given to understand that the second PC-I would be approved by the federal government.

A former RBOD project director says that some new river training works have been added in the backdrop of the 2010 super floods. Spurs, stone pitching etc are kept in view owing to the experience of 2010 floods which had caused massive damage to the drain, requiring the authorities to start work afresh at various locations. “It is primarily due to incomplete drain that these damages were seen in 2010 floods”, says a project official.

The cost of 273km long RBOD-II was estimated at Rs14bn with 2006 as completion year. It was revised to Rs29bn in 2005 with targeted completion in 2008 and subsequently, 2014. Authorities linked delay to poor releases of funds. Official sources told this scribe that Rs28.24bn had been spent and an amount of Rs973m was pending to be released by the Sindh government.

Published in Dawn, Business & Finance weekly, August 22nd, 2016