The recent damage to one of the 14 main regulators of the Rohri canal has alerted the Sindh irrigation department about the neglected upkeep of the decaying irrigation system.

The damage had gone unnoticed during the annual maintenance of the Sukkur barrage and its seven off-taking canals early this year, and led to the closure of the canal for a fortnight in June. It caused a shortage of irrigation water during the peak kharif season when water requirement increases for crops owing to a faster water evaporation rate.

The Rohri canal feeds around 2.9m acres of farmland or 35pc of total command area of the Sukkur barrage. It was closed due to a damaged Phull fall regulator in early June, in the Naushahro Feroze district.

There are reports that the Sindh irrigation department does not follow strictly the maintenance manual which results in such incidents

The canal irrigates lands up to Badin district, a coastal part of Sindh, for orchards and areas that produce cash crops like sugarcane, cotton and wheat. One of the oldest canals, Rohri, was built before the Sukkur barrage. It irrigates farmland located on the left bank of the River Indus and is now 80- years old, requiring more investment for its upkeep and to maintain an uninterrupted water supply.

Sindh Irrigation and Drainage Authority (SIDA) Managing Director Babar Effendi said a similar damage was reported earlier to the Sakrand regulator, which was consequently repaired. The Odero Lal regulator now needs repair for which the required amount has been provided in the current year’s budget. Effendi, a former irrigation secretary, pointed out that it was time all regulators of major canals not only be checked, but also strengthened.

Damage to the regulator at the Rohri canal was reported on June 3 when the irrigation system was getting adequate water supplies this summer. After its repairs, water was released in the canal on June 14.

Sindh Irrigation Secretary Zaheer Hyder Shah had formed a committee of experts comprising Effendi, Idris Rajput and Bashir Dahar to present their findings on the repair work and to identify those responsible for the damage. However, the outcome of their inquiry is not yet known.

An irrigation department official says one more regulator of Rohri canal needs repair, which will be carried out soon. He said the irrigation department tries to ensure regular/annual maintenance of canals and their structures, but such incidents still cannot be avoided owing to old canal structures.

Idris Rajput told this scribe that increased water demands and water flows in the canal’s berms, which protect the canal’s banks against water flows, were washed away. He recalled Rohri’s designed discharge was 10,887 cusecs in 1932 but now it carries 16,000 cusecs. In order to keep the discharge going, the irrigation department has created by-passes for canals wherever necessary. But, eventually these additional flows enter the canal to hit its berm. Retarded banks are now to be created for these canals, he added.

Under the Revamping and Rehabilitation of the Sindh Irrigation and Drainage System — launched in 2004 — at a cost of Rs16bn two of Rohri canal’s regulators were strengthened. One more regulator would be refurbished under the Sindh government’s ADP of this year.

There are reports that the Sindh irrigation department does not strictly follow the maintenance manual which results in such incidents. Complaints of accumulating silt in the canal systems abound. The Sindh government must ponder over how to arrest this decline in the system considering the fact that its economy revolves around the farm sector.

Published in Dawn, Business & Finance weekly, July 4th, 2016