ISLAMABAD, Nov 11: Sindh has informed the federal government that if the Sukkur Barrage is not repaired immediately, huge losses will occur to infrastructure, crops and human lives in the province.

Officials told Dawn that Sindh maintained that at present the Sukkur Barrage needed special repair which included coffer dam, concrete work, stone work, dredging work, stone pitching of barrage portion and the construction of head regulator at Ruk Complex.

The repair work, Sindh believed, did not need to be calculated in terms of cost-benefit ratio at this time and that foremost issue was to avoid huge losses.

A technical committee had been constituted to suggest emergent measures and future strategy to protect the Sukkur Barrage by urgently undertaking the repair work at a cost of Rs887 million.

Sukkur Barrage has a command area of 7.6 million acres and its designed discharge is 900,000 cusecs while the total length of its canal network is about 7,123 miles.

The main purpose of the repair work is to remove sedimentation and De-watering by mechanical means from lines of stream to the end of Dadu Canal, refilling providing stone pitching up to 3.5ft thick and levelling 2ft C.C. flooring up to 176RL, fixing and rehabilitation of piezo meter of U/S & D/S & grouting of piers I and II of the Barrage.

Earlier, on Oct 7, the ministry of water and power and Sindh government had called for undertaking repair and rehabilitation work of Sukkur Barrage damage through engineering services of the Pakistan Army.

The recommendation has been sent to Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz who would take up the matter with the president for approval and for issuance of orders.

Minister for Water and Power Liaquat Ali Jatoi has already discussed the situation with Engineering Chief of Pakistan Army Lt-Gen Mohammad Zubair.