ISLAMABAD: A surprise Tarbela operational plan from Wapda on Thursday came as a shock to the advisory committee of the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) which could not even take up, let alone finalise the Water Availability and Distribution Plan for the Kharif season starting April 1.

Interestingly, the Wapda authorities were part of the Irsa’s Technical Committee (ITC) meeting held on March 24 that had discussed criteria for estimated water shortages and availability during the coming season but did not apprise the meeting about any changes to its operational plan. The ITC had received from various stakeholders separate shortage estimates that ranged between 25 to 35 per cent.

More shockingly, the members for water and power of Wapda who are permanent members of the Irsa’s Advisory Committee (IAC) did not attend the meeting on Thursday that had been called specifically for finalising the water distribution plan for the upcoming season based on estimated water availability and shortages.

Instead, Wapda’s adviser and general managers for Tarbela, construction & maintenance and power attended the advisory committee meeting and reported that Tarbela Dam’s Tunnel-5 (T5) construction plan had changed drastically because of operational constraints and outflows would be much lower than earlier committed in September 2021.

The flabbergasted members and chairman of the Irsa kept on asking the Wapda team what catastrophe had happened over the last 10 days that could not be brought to the notice of the Irsa technical committee meeting on March 24. However, the Wapda team could not satisfy the 5-member Irsa authority and provincial secretaries but promised that a detailed plan would be submitted to the Irsa “shortly”.

As consequence, all the parameters for water availability, shortages and distributions worked on March 24 ITC meeting became irrelevant and would need to be reworked based on the Wapda plan that would clarify what outflows would be available from Tarbela for Kharif crops.

Irsa in a public statement said that a fresh ITC meeting would “re-plan 2023’s Kharif water availability criteria” and therefore, “the advisory committee meeting to finalise/approve Kharif 2023 water availability criteria would be held after ITC’s recommendations based on changed parameters”.

In the meanwhile, Irsa will ensure ad hoc water distribution among the provinces. Mainly because of massive anticipated shortages – about 25 to 35pc – the Irsa would have to follow a controversial 3-tier water management mechanism for the distribution of shares to the provinces.

Published in Dawn, March 31st, 2023