The Unique Katzarah Dam on the Indus

Multiple uniqueness of Katzarah Dam

Katzarah Dam site on the Indus is unique because it has the narrowest dam site in the world. It is about 300 feet at the bed level. Against this, Kalabagh Dam is two miles long and Tarbela is 8000 feet long. Katzarah is unique because it will function as Watershed Management dam by stopping silt erosion from the world’s highly erodible soil in Skardu valley, prolonging the lifespan of Basha Dam from 80 years to 800 years and extend lifespan of Tarbela by 50 years. Katzarah is unique because it is the tallest dam in the world. Katzarah is unique because it has six times the storage capacity of Basha Dam or Kalabagh Dam. Katzarah Dam’s storage capacity is 35 maf the third largest in the world after Aswan Dam and Three Gorges Dam. Katzarah is unique for Pakistan because it has the potential to produce up to 15,000 MW of hydropower, the second largest in the world after Three Gorges Dam. Katzarah has excellent capacity-inflow ratio on the Indus that gives long life span. Katzarah is unique because it will have 1000 years of lifespan. Katzarah is unique because it is the cheapest dam per maf of storage, per MW of hydropower generation, per year of lifespan and per year of service value.

Katzarah is super flood control in mitigating global warming. If built before 2010, it would have avoided human and property losses worth billions of dollars in the current unusual floods. Katzarah would irrigate millions of acres of barren lands in the four provinces including the vast and barren Kachi plain in Baluchistan from the proposed All Pakistan Grand Canal from Chashma barrage as initiated by me in 1962.  Katzarah Dam would help implement paras 2, 4, 6, and para 14 (e) of the Water Accord by storing more water and end bitter water dispute as that is due to shortage of water, and due to silting of reservoirs by 6.6 maf. Katzarah Dam is needed to mitigate the adverse effects of reducing rivers flow in Pakistan due to global warming. It is needed for growing artificial forests where ever possible.

Katzarah Dam will serve as Replacement dam for the Indus Waters Treaty as we have lost 6.6 maf of replacement storage in Tarbela and Mangla. Replenishment of lost storage is vital, otherwise Indus Waters Treaty will cease to function. Katzarah Dam will regulate the highly erratic flow of the Indus, that varies between the minimum of 9000 cusecs to the maximum of 1,200,000 cusecs, Katzarah is a carryover dam. It is a development dam. Katzarah is inter-seasonal dam. 

Another beauty of Katzarah Dam is that it is supported by Nisar Memon Parliamentary Committee, and WAPDA promised the committee to submit Katzarah feasibility report by September, 2005. Unfortunately, after commitment,  WAPDA failed to submit the feasibility report because of Kalabagh issue.  Similarly, AGN Qazi Technical Committee recommended Katzarah Dam. The Government of Sindh has requested the Federal Government to build Katzarah Dam exactly repeating my stance. I fully assisted both the Committees in their task. I discovered Katzarah Dam in 1962 and it was confirmed by Dr Pieter Lieftnick in 1968. As Chairman IRSA in 1994, I strongly recommended to the Ministry of Water and Power to build Katzarah dam informing them of Katzarah unique merits. Newspapers also published my articles but nothing has been done as, WAPDA is adamant to this dam. I have no means to meet Prime Minister to brief him on all dams with their merits and demerits. I wait for a miracle.

Katzarah Dam is direly needed, as by the year 2070, Basha Dam, Tarbela Dam, Mangla Dam will almost silt up, losing about another 14 maf of water besides 6.6 maf already lost to silting. This means the canal irrigation system in the Indus basin that is the food basket of Pakistan, will be on run-of-the-river. There will be no Rabi crop and early Kharif will also suffer. The consequences will be that famine like conditions will prevail. There will then be no point of return. Therefore, be wise to build Katzarah Dam or face famine, hunger and bloody revolution for food.

Presently, Tarbela, Mangla and Chashma have been silted up by 6.6 maf. This has created water shortage and inter-provincial water dispute. Water dispute will continue till building of  new dams to create 27.35 maf of water to meet Water Accord requirements in para 2 besides paras 4, 6, and 14(e). Storage to be created in paras 4, para 6 and para 14 (e) are in addition to that. This dispute is growing and the proposed restructuring of IRSA as suggested is no solution to end water dispute that is due to shortage of water and no other reason.

 It will be alarming to find that Tarbela Reservoir must have silted up by about 0.5 to 0.8 maf during this flood season by the 2010 super flood. This will further aggravate inter-provincial water dispute as silting of storage will reach to 7 maf.  

What sort of agricultural country is this when no dam is built by the Government in 36 years after the construction of Tarbela Dam? We have already lost about 7.0 maf of storage though the country’s irrigated agriculture depends on storage water? It is unfortunate that storage capacity on our rivers is only 9% of the total annual runoff of rivers. For such country and for such irrigation system it should be about 60%. This is necessary because there is no dam sites on Kabul River, Jehlum River and Chinab River. The Indus River flow requires to be stored in dams wisely so that each dam has long lifespan. Dams must be built where ever possible.              

One ridiculous objection by faultfinders is that Baltic culture would be destroyed as, Skardu valley and the airstrip would submerge in the Lake. The example of Three Gorges Dam in China is before us where 2.2 million population were displaced and resettled first, and then work on the dam started. Everything was done peacefully. We can follow the example of China.

In casr of Katzarah, about 22000 people would be affected. These people can be resettled along the periphery of one of the largest Lake in the world that Katzarah Dam will create and in the adjoining area with in Baltistan. Baltic culture, on the contrary will flourish and their economic condition would improve, as the Lake will be the finest tourists resort. Airstrip and helipad can be built somewhere else. Everything is easy if things are done in a planned manner. Hydroplane can land on the surface of the vast Lake.  

The multiple and massive benefits of Katzarah Dam cannot be ignored. Pakistan economic survival depends on Katzarah. This is because, Indus River is the only River in Pakistan where dams can be built and Katzarah is unique on many counts.

 Downstream of Basha Dam there are hardly three or four mega dam sites on the Indus that can collectively store about 12 maf of water. These dams too will be subjected to rapid silting. Therefore, the only long lifespan dam left on the Indus is of Katzarah Dam. Moreover, its storage capacity is more than the collective storage capacities of all the conceivable dams in Pakistan. Katzarah is a gift of God for Pakistan.  

In 1962, when I discovered the dam site, the population of Skardu was hardly about 3000. Please build Katzarah now before the area is over populated and it creates political interference. Pakistan cannot ignore building this unique dam as Katzarah will serve as the spinal chord of Indus basin irrigation system that is the food basket of Pakistan.

 Global warming, climate change has made a beginning with Pakistan, destroying not only its economy, but the country as a whole. About 22% of land area of Pakistan is severely  affected by rainwater and super floods ruining about 30 million of population, and billions of dollars losses besides the loss of human live, property, crops and infrastructures. Denudation of forests and blockage of waterways of natural surface drains have aggravated flash floods to flow in sheet form over a large area during floods. The other major important reason for flood havoc is the negligence not to build dams for the past 36 years after Tarbela.

Had Katzarah Dam on the Indus, and Guroh Dop Dam on Panjkora Rivers were built as I discovered these in 1962,  flood fury would have been tamed, beside storing large volume of flood water that wasted to sea. I estimate, this year flood wastage to sea would be over 80 maf that is equivalent to 13 times the storage of Basha Dam. On August 21, 2000, China offered to build Katzarah/Skardu Dam but WAPDA ignored the offer without reasons. See the Daily Khabarein head lines.

If Katzarah Dam and Guroh Dop Dam were built in time, there would have been no devastation, death and destruction in 2010 floods and the country would not have faced crippling load shedding. These two wonder dams would have avoided water crises, power crises, flood crises and crises due to rapid silting of reservoirs. It is surprising WAPDA is ignorant of these two dams. What an organization!

Gomal Zam multipurpose flood control dam at Khajuri Katch in South Waziristan

A multipurpose dam at Khajuri Katch on Gomal River discovered by me in 1959 is an obvious example of flood control. Gomal Zam is notorious for furious floods since 1850, severely damaging villages, crops, property, infrastructures, besides forming ravines due to soil erosion. On completion of Gomal Zam Dam this year, it has created a vast reservoir of about one maf of floodwater at Khajuri Katch Reservoir. The result of this multipurpose flood control dam is that it has completely saved the Town of Kulachi and the surrounding villages, lands, crops etc in the two districts of DIKhan and Tank although 22% of Pakistan is ruined by rains and floods. This is because, there is no flood control dam on the Indus at Katzarah, and no flood control dam at Guroh Dop on Panjkora River and no flood control dam at Kalam on Swat River. Had these dams been built, Pakistan would have been safe against the historic floods that completely ruined the country and destroy its 30 million population. There would have been no power shortage and water shortage.    

I submitted to the Government of Pakistan a Master Plan, titled “Irrigation Planning and Construction for West Pakistan” in 1962. It was sent to all concerned for information and action. The Ministry of Food and Agriculture (M. Ihsanul Haq Deputy Secretary) acknowledged its receipt and demanded more copies of the report as the Aid officers were interested in it. Refer to the receipt of the Ministry’s letter No: is D. 386-DS (PO)/63, dated 7^th January, 1963. The Government took no action on the Master Plan’s implementation  in 47 years though Aid giving organizations showed interest in it. The Master Plan included Katzarah and Guroh Dop besides All Pakistan Grand Canal to irrigate Kachi plain..   

 In a separate paper, I have suggested to create Indus Valley Authority (IVA) to build dams and barrages on the Indus River where ever possible. No interest is shown. The head quarter of new organization (IVA) should be at Islamabad. WAPDA Head quarter should be shifted to Islamabad like that of IRSA so that WAPDA works in coordination with other concerned organizations like Planning Commission, IRSA. Ministry of Water and Power and the Ministry of Agriculture.

    

Engr. Fateh Ullah Khan Gandapur

B.Sc. Engg; (Distinction in Dams & Reservoir Engineering),  M.ASCE (USA), FIE (Pak)

Former Chairman IRSA

Author of 2 books

1.        God, Universe & Man; The Holy Quran & The Hereafter2  

2.        . God Created The Universe With The Purpose To Server Human Kind

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