KARACHI: As water level in Indus river is increasing fast and flood is feared due to goining monsoon rains, Sindh Minister for Irrigation Department Jam Khan Shoro Wednesday presided over a high level meeting with the relevant officers of the irrigation department to review the overall situation of the Indus river’s embankments and arrangements made to cope with the possible flood-like situation arising after heavy monsoon rains in the Sindh province.
The meeting was attended by Provincial Secretary for Irrigation Department Jamaluddin Maghan, Additional Secretary Muhammad Ayub Soomro, Advisor Water Distribution Cell Junaid Hashim Talpur and Director Regulation Shahbaz Akhtar. The concerned officers of the irrigation department gave him a detailed briefing on the overall water situation and protected banks of Indus River in the province.
Shoro formed a committee comprising three members, headed by Advisor Water Distribution Cell Junaid Hashim Talpur, for monitoring and visiting all protective embankments of Indus river’s including SP Bund (embankment), Manchhar Bunds and LBOD Bunds.
Shoro directed the committee that they should visit all the embankments of the Indus River and to review the overall situation arisen after the recent heavy spell of monsoon rains and the report of the same would also be submitted in the concerned office on daily basis.
Meanwhile, another two-member Barrages Water Regulating Committee was also formed by the Provincial Minister Irrigation in order to cope with the possible flood-like situation in the province. This committee will ensure the monitoring of regulations of the water as per the SOPs and pass further directives to the relevant Chief Engineers to ensure regulation and monitoring of water at the barrages keeping in mind the possible flood situation in the Indus River.
The minister further instructed relevant officers that the head of those two committees would submit report to the concerned office at 9am on a daily basis, adding that negligence would not be tolerated at the part of the officers.
Shoro also directed the relevant officers that they should remain alert in the wake of monsoon rains and finalize their arrangements to deal with any flood like situation and to avoid happening any untoward situation. In this regard, strict action would be taken against the negligent officers, he added.