PESHAWAR, Dec 31: The NWFP government has proposed installation of early flood warning system in Malakand and Kohat regions to monitor the situation in major rivers entering from Afghanistan, sources said.

An official said that the provincial irrigation department had opposed the federal government’s plan to install a radar system in Cherat, some 40 kilometres southeast of Peshawar, because it would cover only downstream, but not the upstream flow.

“The department has asked the federal flood commission to install early flood warning system in Kohat and Malakand, instead of Cherat,” said Engineer Abdul Wali Yousafzai, head of the provincial hydrology division.

He said that hydrology division needed to monitor flood level in Kabul, Swat, Chitral, Tochi and Kurram rivers, mostly entering from Afghanistan, and also cover upper parts of the province and its adjacent tribal areas.

“There is no monitoring system installed on rivers entering from Afghanistan whereas the Northern Areas are prone to flash-flood,” he added.

Mr Yousafzai said that installation of the radar system in Cherat would cover only Northern Areas, Terbala and Chashma Right Bank Canal in the NWFP, but it could not monitor the rivers’ situation flowing from Afghanistan.

The government had chalked out short- and long-term strategy to minimise damages owing to floods. The provincial government had also proposed to the centre to install state-of-the-art flood warning system and to build small reservoirs in upper areas of the province.

It is learnt that the provincial government had demanded Rs22 billion from the centre for the plans.

Officials said that the ministry of water and power had recently directed the federal flood commission to provide early flood warning system to the NWFP to monitor situation of rivers in the province.

The commission had prepared PC-I of the project and sought funds from the federal government.

The sources said that the commission had also sought technical assistance from a German firm for the installation of telemetry system at appropriate locations.

Lahore-based meteorology chief Shaukat Ali Awan, when approached, said that radar system in Cherat would cover an area in 450 kilometres radius, which was sufficient to monitor water level in all major rivers of the NWFP and tribal areas.