SUKKUR: The federal secretary of communications and National Highway Authority (NHA) chairman reviewed flood preparedness and position of bridges over the Indus on Friday.

According to a press release, all the NHA bridges are perfect and safe. It described the bridges as “structurally sound and fully capable of withstanding flood pressures this season”.

The press release was issued after a detailed inspection tour led by Federal Secretary Communications Ali Sher Mehsud and NHA Chairman Mohammad Shaheryar Sultan on Friday.

They were accompanied by Engineer Ramesh Raja, Member South Zone NHA Karachi and Sindh’s NHA team.

The inspection team began its visit at Kotri Barrage in Hyderabad and concluded at Sukkur Barrage, covering four major Indus crossings — the Hyderabad Bypass Bridge (N-5), the Qazi Ahmed-Amri Bridge, the Khairpur-Larkana Bridge, and the Sukkur Bypass Bridge (N-65).

“All NHA bridges have a designed capacity of 1.4 million Cusec to pass. Roads that had suffered damage during the catastrophic floods of 2010 and 2022 were also revisited to evaluate present conditions and protective measures,” it said.

Officials reported that all bridges remain intact; piers, abutments, river training works and other structures in safe condition. Preventive cleaning and maintenance works have already been completed.

A detailed briefing was later held at the Sukkur Bypass Bridge near the Sukkur Barrage. Commissioner Sukkur Abid Saleem and senior irrigation officials joined the session.

The federal secretary told the audience that the updated design capacity of barrages and bridges in Sindh showed that the Indus River is likely to experience a maximum of 800,000 cusecs at a time.

“Under such conditions, Sindh would remain safe from the scale of devastation witnessed in upper parts of the country during past floods,” he said while praising the preparedness and alertness of the Sindh government in coordination with federal efforts.

To ensure round-the-clock vigilance, the NHA has set up monitoring and rehabilitation camps at each bridge. Field teams are stationed on-site, while contractors remain on standby for emergency works.

The inspection also revealed strong coordination between the NHA, district administrations and irrigation authorities.

Cross-drainage structures have been cleared and reinforced, and lessons from the 2010 disaster have been incorporated into present strategies.

The secretary remarked: “Protecting our highways and bridges is not just about infrastructure, it is about protecting lives and ensuring relief and connectivity are never disrupted in times of crisis”,

Published in Dawn, September 13th, 2025