SUKKUR, July 12: With the water level at Sukkur Barrage continually rising, the next 48 hours will be critical for at least three protective dykes including Mud bund, Akil Agani bund and Saifullah Magsi bund, irrigation officials told Dawn here from the control room. The officials said they expected an inflow of 500,000 cusecs into the barrage on Tuesday night. Security measures are already in place to meet any untoward situation. Flood waters have swamped more than 100 houses of Katcha Bunder Sukkur due to the high water level at Sukkur Barrage.
In the next two days, the officials said, the Indus water will reach Mud bund, Akil Agani bund and Saifullah Magsi bund where sandbags, stones and heavy machinery have been placed to avoid any erosion.
However, the chief engineer at Sukkur Barrage, Nawaz Memon, said there was no danger to Mud bund because the water current was falling in spite of the rising level. Since the water flow is lower than the protective dykes, Mr Memon said there is nothing to worry about.
He claimed that conditions had eased in the wake of the decrease of 77,000 cusecs at Trimoon Punjab. Until Tuesday morning the discharge level at Trimoon had been 163,000 cusecs but within a few hours it had fallen by 77,000 cusecs.
Mr Memon said that the water released by India into the River Chenab would reach Guddu Barrage on July 16 and 17 and Sukkur on July 18. According to him, the level is not likely to rise more than 400,000 cusecs at Guddu, especially since 545,000 cusecs had already passed through it.
Irrigation sources claimed that the River Indus had started receding at Guddu Barrage while it had been on the rise at Sukkur Barrage.
On Tuesday, a decrease of 33,000 cusecs was recorded at Guddu and its upstream level was 508,000 cusecs and downstream 473,403 cusecs, while at Sukkur Barrage the upstream level was 493,925 cusecs and downstream was 438948 cusecs. At Kotri barrage the upstream level was 125,602 cusecs and downstream was 87780 cusecs.
According to revenue sources, about 90 per cent of katcha areas between Guddu and Sukkur barrages have been submerged, and some 326 big villages, 1,500 small villages, 171 primary schools, 43 middle schools, 125 police checkposts, and 26 police stations of katcha have been inundated. Flood waters have also damaged the cotton crop sown over 32,000 acres.
Meanwhile, the Bhanut bund is facing a severe threat from encroaching flood waters. To reinforce the dyke, trucks of stone have been sent to the area. By July 16—the day the flood waters are expected to reach the spot—the dyke would will be fortified.
The water level in the Kabul and Swat rivers is rising again at different points after receding over the last few days, officials from the control room of Warsak Dam said here on Tuesday.
The flow of water into River Kabul at Warsak remained 90,000 cusecs all day while the water flow in the River Swat was very high at Monda headworks. The flow of water at Monda headworks, as recorded by the Hydrology Irrigation division of Peshawar at 1:00 pm, was 61,607 cusecs of water. The flow of water also remained high in the River Chitral and was recorded at 42,500 cusecs.
The provincial relief department said that some areas had been inundated and a few wooden bridges had been washed away due to the sudden rise of water in the River Chitral.
The provincial relief department said that roads leading to Ludkoh, Mastuj, Kelash, Brip and Durba had been partially damaged. It also said that erosion had started in the villages of Naqai, Sukkar, Hamba Dher and Daulat Pura due to the high water level in the River Swat.
A spur near Pashtoon Ghari has been damaged due to the flood water and the village has been inundated. Sand bags are being provided to the villagers.
An Inter Services Public Relations press release said the Pakistan Army had so far conducted 17 rescue operations in the flood-hit areas of the NWFP and had evacuated 2,500 people. The ISPR release said around 300 patients were examined in a free medical camp established by the Army Medical Corps in Shabara in district Charsadda.
Meanwhile, the water level in the River Chenab near Head Marala and in River Tavi has been continuously decreasing, as the flow was measured at 110,000 cusecs at Head Marala in the River Chenab on Monday. However, now there is a low level flood in the River Chenab at Head Marala and in River Tavi near Bajwat, officials of the Sialkot Flood Commission said. The water level also dropped in various parts of Sialkot district due to the high flood in Rivers Chenab and Tavi and in seasonal Nullah Dek. All the remote villages of Bajwat remained cut off for the eighth consecutive day.