LARKANA, Dec 5: In the wake of reports that the Indus was changing course at Akil-Agani loop Bund, a team of irrigation experts arrived here and visited the site on Thursday.

The river had begun striking the 4.32-km-long flood protective embankment at 1/7km point inthe last monsoon, sources in the irrigation department told this correspondent.

Later the river began changing its course, creating an island and striking the embankment opposite the Shaikh village, they said.

Several truckloads of stones were dumped at the site to save the apron and spur of the embankment, the sources said, but before that the water flow had washed away a portion of the mole- head spur and eroded certain parts of the embankment.

Now the direct strike of water flow was reported at 2/3 point which was also visited by this correspondent during a visit of the site.

Realizing gravity of the situation, the Larkana irrigation department sent a report on Sept 12 to the concerned authorities. They proposed that the damaged apron of the embankment should be urgently repair that, according to them, would cost Rs 29 million.

The irrigation authorities sent the experts team to the area on Thursday.

The team, comprising Sindh irrigation additional secretary Khadim Hussain Memon, former chief engineer Noor Ahmed Shah and Nazir Ahmed Mughal, was apprised about the situation.

The team members were of the opinion that Sindh government had no funds for the repair work and the federal government and Asian Development Bank might be approached through Indus River Commission to obtain funds to undertake the work before the coming flood season.

They asked the local irrigation officials to prepare a plan for combating the situation and submit a report in two weeks.

Now the repair could cost Rs100 million as the degree of damages had been increased, the sources said.

They apprehended that the villages situated at lower level than that of the river could come under threat in the flood season.

If the repair work was delayed, the continued direct strike at Akil-Agani embankment could create a dangerous situation, the sources said.