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Express Tribune
7 days ago
- Business
- Express Tribune
Centre to help resolve Sindh's water woes
The federal government assured the Sindh government on Thursday of its full cooperation in addressing the province's water-related issues, including K-IV Phase-1, improvements in the Hub Canal water share, the Right Bank Outfall Drain (RBOD), and water distribution under the 1991 Water Accord. Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah held a meeting with Federal Water Resources Minister Moin Wattoo at the Chief Minister House to discuss key water projects. The issue of water shortage for Karachi metropolis figured prominently in the meeting. The meeting was attended by Provincial Planning Minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah, Local Government Minister Saeed Ghani, Irrigation Minister Jam Khan Shoro, Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) Chairman Naveed Asghar Chaudhry, Sindh Chief Secretary Rahim Sheikh and senior officers. The meeting took place after a visit to the K-IV project by Wattoo, along with provincial Planning Minister Nasir Shah. The meeting was informed that with 63% construction work finished, the project's Phase I would be completed next year. The water requirement of Karachi, at present, is 1,300 million gallons per day (MGD). However, the city receives half of its needs – 650 MGD. To meet the shortage, the Sindh government planned K-IV project to supply 650 MGD from Keenjhar Lake to the city. WAPDA is working on Phase-1 of the project, following its approval from the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) in January 2022 at a cost of Rs126.404 billion. Despite administrative approval, the chief minister stated that the project faced challenges that needed federal intervention. Shah pointed out that the project required Rs39.964 billion funding during the current fiscal year, 2025-26, but the federal government had allocated Rs3.209 billion only. It could cause delays, risking cost escalation and contractor claims. Wattoo told the chief minister that he would brief Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif regarding the project to secure additional funds. He acknowledged that Sindh had mostly resolved the Right of Way (ROW) issues but two major obstacles still remained – land acquisition in Thatta and a court case. The chief minister assured that the land for the pumping station in Thatta would be handed over soon. He also assured the federal government of the release of Rs8.5 billion as part of the fourth quarterly instalment in Sindh's share of funding in the project. Chief Minister Shah said that Sindh had repaired the old Hub Canal and built a new 100 MGD-capacity channel to improve water supply to Karachi. Both leaders agreed to conduct a technical survey to assess water availability before submitting recommendations to the Council of Common Interests (CCI). Inter-provincial water distribution The chief minister urged the federal minister to facilitate a direct meeting between Sindh and Punjab's irrigation departments to resolve the water-sharing disputes. He emphasised that water distribution must be done under the 1991 Water Accord. Chief Minister Shah recalled that the CCI had tasked the then attorney general for Pakistan with reviewing the accord during the tenure of former prime minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi. Wattoo agreed to hold separate meetings with representatives from both provinces.
Business Recorder
16-07-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
Floods, disasters cannot be controlled completely: Leghari
KARACHI: Engineer Ehsan Leghari, Sindh's representative in IRSA, stated that disasters or floods cannot be completely controlled; therefore, we must learn to live with floods. He said that the causes of natural disasters or floods are not solely environmental changes; rather, the preparations made for disaster prevention and governance methods also contribute to them. He made these remarks while addressing a seminar held today at a local hotel in Karachi, organized in collaboration between Meta Research Netherlands and PDMA Sindh (Provincial Disaster Management Authority Sindh). The purpose of the seminar was to deliberate on the lessons learned from the 2022 floods and preparations to reduce losses from natural disasters. Engineer Ehsan Leghari said there could be several reasons for the 2022 floods, including the incomplete LBOD (Left Bank Outfall Drain) and RBOD (Right Bank Outfall Drain) projects, weak barrage embankments, and encroachments on canal banks. He stated that the floods of 2010 and 2022 have exposed the causes of flooding in Sindh, so now we must develop a strategy for flood preparedness to minimize losses. Other speakers at the seminar included PDMA's Director Operations Muhammad Shayan Shah, DG Water Sector Improvement Program Nazeer Memon, Salim Ur Rehman Sheikh, Imran Leghari, Muhammad Suleman G. Abro, Sarwan Baloch, and others. The speakers emphasized the causes of natural disasters, the lessons learned, preparations to reduce losses, and creating public awareness about disasters. Ashfaq Soomro, Country Head of MetaMeta, briefing about the organization, informed that MetaMeta has been working for the past 25 years and is active in 10 countries. He stated that MetaMeta has conducted research on the causes and lessons of the 2022 floods in Sindh, Balochistan, and Punjab. According to him, 20 million people were affected in the 2010 floods, while 31 million were affected in 2022. The seminar was also attended by Muhammad Ismail Kumbhar, journalist Zufeen, Sahar Gul Bhatti, Nasir Panhwar, Dr. Ali Akbar Hangorjo, Fozia Aziz, and others. Copyright Business Recorder, 2025
Express Tribune
15-07-2025
- General
- Express Tribune
Learn to live with floods: IRSA member
Disasters like floods cannot be fully controlled, therefore, "we must learn to live with them," said Engineer Ehsan Leghari, Sindh's representative in the Indus River System Authority (IRSA), while addressing a seminar. He said that while environmental changes contribute to natural disasters, weak governance and lack of disaster preparedness also worsen the situation. The seminar was jointly organised by MetaMeta Research Netherlands and the Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) Sindh to review lessons learnt from the catastrophic 2022 floods and to discuss ways to minimise future losses. Leghari pointed out that the incomplete Left Bank Outfall Drain (LBOD) and Right Bank Outfall Drain (RBOD) projects, weak barrage embankments, and widespread encroachments along canal banks were among the key reasons behind repeated flooding in Sindh. "The floods of 2010 and 2022 have exposed serious vulnerabilities. Now is the time to formulate a comprehensive strategy for flood preparedness to mitigate future damages," he stressed.
