HYDERABAD: Sindh appears to be bearing a disproportionate share of the water shortage compared to upper riparian Punjab in the current distribution of water flows for the second 10-day period of May. This comes as controversial link canals — frequently contested by the lower riparian province — have continued to operate uninterrupted for the past month.
The early Kharif season is currently progressing rapidly. Sindh consistently maintains that it requires a greater volume of water during this early phase due to the advanced sowing schedule of its crops. However, demand for water flows across Sindh’s three barrages is expected to rise significantly in the coming days as all perennial and non-perennial channels are opened to receive their allocated shares. This surge in demand is likely to exacerbate the existing water shortage even further.
The canals of the Sukkur and Guddu barrages will require substantial water flows, in addition to Balochistan’s allocated share from these two structures. Meanwhile, summer temperatures in the region consistently hover between 40 and 45 degrees Celsius, leading to heightened evaporation and conveyance losses.
The Sindh Irrigation Department submitted its 10-day indent allocations for the second 10-day period of the current month to the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) on May 16. This indent requested 95,000 cusecs, in line with the Water Apportionment Accord 1991. Sindh’s indent for the third 10-day period, estimated to be around 105,000 cusecs, will be submitted to Irsa on May 21.
“However, against an indent of 95,000 cusecs, Sindh is being provided with around 80,000 cusecs of water downstream of the Chashma Barrage. Against our allocation of 63,540 cusecs, we have withdrawn around 49,756 cusecs into the canals of our three barrages, reflecting an overall shortage of 22 per cent (13,000 cusecs) across these locations. From an indent perspective, the actual deficit is slightly over 45,244 cusecs,” an irrigation official said, after analysing the available flows in the system.
Irsa allowed the operation of the CJ link canal on April 20 with a flow of 521 cusecs, while the TP link canal started withdrawing water with an initial flow of 5,836 cusecs. According to Sindh’s standpoint, these two link canals should only be operated once Sindh’s indented supplies for its own canals have been fully met. However, by May 19, the CJ canal was withdrawing 11,500 cusecs, and the TP canal was drawing 8,122 cusecs.
Sindh receives its indent downstream of the Chashma Barrage, a volume that includes the allocations for the Taunsa and Panjnad barrages as well as Balochistan. Against Sindh’s indent of 95,000 cusecs, the Chashma Barrage recorded an upstream inflow of 114,579 cusecs and a downstream outflow of 105,000 cusecs.
The official explained that out of the 105,000 cusecs, the CJ link canal received a flow of 11,500 cusecs, while the Chashma Right Bank Canal (CRBC) drew 3,625 cusecs. Further down at Taunsa, the TP link canal was allocated 8,122 cusecs, the Muzaffargarh canal 7,000 cusecs, and the Dera Ghazi Khan canal 5,900 cusecs. This brought the total to 21,022 cusecs against an allocation of 24,000 cusecs for Punjab on the Indus — representing a minor shortage of around 3,000 cusecs. “Flow data at Taunsa indicates that Punjab bore a far smaller shortage when compared with Sindh’s 13,000-cusecs deficit relative to its allocation,” a Sukkur Barrage official said when interpreting the river data.
The right-bank canals of the Guddu and Sukkur barrages remained closed until April. Meanwhile, rehabilitation work at the Sukkur Barrage under the Sindh Barrages Improvement Programme (SBIP) for gate replacement is nearing completion. In the third 10-day period beginning on May 21, the demand for water flows at the Pat Feeder and Ghotki Feeder canals is expected to increase.
The Sukkur Barrage’s NW (North Western), Rice and Dadu canals will soon be ready to draw a greater volume of water. “Consequently, if Sindh does not receive its share in line with the submitted indent, the shortage will intensify. The Kotri Barrage is supplied water by the Sukkur Barrage authorities, who fear that if flows do not improve, maintaining the pond level at the barrage will become difficult. This, in turn, could worsen the shortage percentage for the Kotri Barrage,” the official said.
Sindh will now begin operating its non-perennial canals as the season advances. Similar to the right-bank canals of the Sukkur Barrage, the Pat Feeder (canal) on the right side of the Guddu Barrage will require an initial inflow of 500 cusecs. The Pat Feeder (canal) supplies water to Balochistan, mirroring the function of the Sukkur Barrage’s right-bank Kirthar canal.
The Kirthar canal management has already submitted an indent of 1,000 cusecs to the Sukkur Barrage authorities. Meanwhile, a request for 1,800 cusecs has been lodged for the right-bank Rice canal of the Sukkur Barrage, and the Ghotki Feeder will also require water imminent to the advancing season. So far, the canals of the Guddu Barrage have received 2,451 cusecs, followed by 36,050 cusecs at the Sukkur Barrage, and 11,255 cusecs at Kotri, with zero discharge recorded downstream up to May 19.
Irsa’s Director of Operations Khalid Idrees Rana stated that supplies for Sindh had been capped at 80,000 cusecs because the province had utilised water over and above the allocation plan it originally submitted to the authority.
“Sindh had a utilisation rate of 34 per cent according to its water account plan up to May 10, against Punjab’s deficit of minus nine per cent. By June 10, we have to ensure that shortages are equally borne between the provinces. The river system-wide shortage was already predicted at 15 per cent for the early Kharif season,” Mr Rana stated.
An irrigation official stated that Sindh had already submitted a letter to Irsa, arguing that flows supplied to the province as a result of rainfall within the river system should not be deducted from its allocation. He noted that in an identical scenario in 2024, such surpluses were utilised as “flood flows” by both Punjab and Sindh. These flows were subsequently adjusted by Irsa rather than being deducted from the provinces’ respective shares.
Published in Dawn, May 20th, 2026
