KARACHI: Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah said on Thursday that he hoped Prime Minister Imran Khan would soon convene a meeting of the Council of Common Interests (CCI) so that he could raise the issue of acute shortage of water in the province.

Water shortage in the province was anticipated to be 38 per cent in Rabi season during current fiscal year, said the chief minister during Question Hour in the Sindh Assembly session.

He said in reply to lawmakers’ queries said Sindh’s share was expected to be 9.291 million acre feet (MAF) against the allocation of 14.82 MAF under the water accord apportioned by the Indus River System Authority (Irsa).

“To manage the feared acute shortage of water during Rabi season, the irrigation department has worked out a contingency plan by prioritising supply of water,” he added.

Mr Shah said that water was prioritised for provision for drinking purposes and for late-sown Kharif crops during wheat-sowing season.

Water would be supplied to canals by rotation, he said.

He said in reply to a question that RBOD-II project was scheduled to be completed by November this year under revised PC-I.

But, he added, the task not could be accomplished without provision of funds by the federal government.

The chief minister said in answer to a question regarding salinity levels in the Manchhar Lake that the provincial government had planned to recharge the lake with fresh water from escape channels of Rice Canal and Dadu Canal (Rawat escape from Rice Canal, Dhamrao escape from Rice Canal and Prechard escape from Dadu Canal).

He informed that fresh water was now being released into MNV drain through these channels which would ultimately discharge water into Manchhar Lake, mitigating the problem of pollution.

Besides the additional sources,

Mr Shah said, the traditional feeding canals Aral Wah and Danister Wah were also functional but were subject to adequate release into the Indus.

He said in answer to another query that a project for construction of fall structures on Nara Canal and strengthening of NIP of Jamrao Canal at Mile 17 to 49 would be completed during 2020 but it was subject to release of funds from both provincial and federal governments.

“The original cost of the project was Rs1,086.15 million that was fully funded by the federal government but the revised PC-I cost Rs2,274.449m with 75/25 share of the Centre and province,” he said.

Published in Dawn, January 25th, 2019