RAHIM YAR KHAN: The residents of the affected villages, including Wahi Jumman Shah, near Kot Samaba held a protest against the district administration and irrigation officials for not taking effective measures to plug the breach in Sadiq Feeder canal which widened to 150 feet on Friday.

On the other hand, Punjab Irrigation Minister Kazim Pirzada visited the breach site near Wahi Jumman Shah on Friday and Deputy Commissioner (DC) Khuram Pervez with Chief Engineer Shouket Virk and Superintendent Engineer Khalid Mehmood briefed him about plugging the breach.

Earlier, the locals said the efforts by the authorities concerned to control the breach started too late as the machinery arrived on Friday when more than 15 hours had passed and water had flooded localities of Kot Samaba and Tiranda Saway Khan towns, damaging crops and orchards. Traffic on the road connecting Rahim Yar Khan to Khanpur cities was suspended at Kot Samaba.

Irrigation minister visits the site, takes stock of situation

According to the local residents, the canal water had flooded more than 7,000 acres of agricultural land and the walls of many mud houses in affected localities collapsed. There were also reports of the causalties of livestock too.

They said that except Rescue 1122 workers, no help arrived there from any other government authority. They alleged that irrigation officials were delivering false statements of plugging the breach after making visits to a specific point at Sadiq Feeder Canal.

A local farmer of Wahi Jumman Shah and chairman of All Pakistan Kissan Foundation, Syed Mehmoodul Haq Bukhari, told this correspondent that when he contacted superintendent engineer (SE) and EXEN, they said there were no funds and manpower in the irrigation department to maintain the canal banks. He said when he called the Rahim Yar Khan assistant commissioner, he arrived in the evening on Thursday only for a while and returned without taking any steps and helping the affectees. Similarly, an official of the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) visited the site for a few minutes and returned.

Bukhari demanded that the affected farmers should be compensated and their Aabyana should also be waived off.

During his visit, Punjab Irrigation Minister Kazim Pirzada said the affected farmers would be compensated after the estimation of losses. Chief Engineer Virk claimed that the breach will be plugged by Friday evening. However, sources said that it would take another 24 hours to plug the breach in Sadiq Feeder Canal near Wahi Jumman Shah.

Published in Dawn, May 24th, 2025