ISLAMABAD, March 29: The technical committee of the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) failed on Wednesday to finalize water availability estimates for the Kharif season but said there would be no water shortage during the season.

A committee meeting, presided over by its federal member Fazlur Rahman Siddiqui and attended by the representatives of the provincial irrigation departments and Wapda, was held ‘to chalk out the Kharif 2006 (April-September) anticipated plan.’

However, ‘it decided that a reconciled working paper on anticipated water availability will be prepared and placed before the Irsa advisory committee for consideration and approval,’ a statement by Irsa said.

A meeting of the advisory committee has been scheduled for April 11.

In an ambiguous statement, Irsa claimed to have agreed with consensus on probability of 35 per cent water availability at Tarbela, 45 per cent each at Nowshera, Mangla and Marala and 0.643 million acre feet from the eastern rivers.

When contacted after the meeting, Mr Siddiqui said that water availability figures in terms of million acre feet could not be worked out.

Asked if the failure was due to water shortages estimated by some stakeholders, he said there would be no shortage and demands of all the provinces would be met.

Answering another question, he said that water distribution would be made according to the water accord as was the practice in vogue and since there would be no shortage, there was no dispute over provincial shares under paragraph two or 14-b of the accord.