Woes of Water, Power, Floods, Silting, Salinity and solutions

Master Plan to fight water woes in brief

Pakistan is in deep crises due to shortage of water and hydropower for lack of multipurpose dams that also control floods and silting of reservoirs.  Pakistan is dangerously exposed to future devastating floods any times and many times like of 2010 and crippling load shedding for no dams built for the last 47 years (37+10) after Tarbela. The existing Reservoirs have rapidly silted by 6.5 maf due to silting for lack of watershed management, and due to wrong planning of storage dams ignoring their Capacity Inflow ratio for long life.

Saline lands have been wrongly handled by ill-conceived SCARPs and NDP, both failed and abandoned. Irrigation system is without drainage, and there is no means to evacuate injurious salts.

Kalabagh Dam became controversial politically. Its hydraulic design of 50 days restricted mid-level sluicing is technically controversial between KBD Consultants and WAPDA. WAPDA insisted for “KBD or no dam” policy for 37 years. This resulted in devastating floods of 2010 and crippling load shedding that destroyed economy.

India has built 32 dams and has acquired ability to stop 38 maf of our Rabi water requirements as reported by John Kerry. We have not reacted. India has silently started water war using water as weapon of mass destruction. India is also planning 12 dams on Kabul River to dry our Rabi supplies.

Solutions to crises are;  Build unique 35 maf multipurpose Katzarah Dam to store 6 times the storage of Basha Dam, generate 10,000 MW hydropower, control super floods in the Indus, and work as watershed management dam to prevent silt in the Indus water and increase life of Basha from 85 years to 800 years. World Bank study shows Skardu valley is the source of silt. Katzarah if built, will irrigate about 3 to 4 million acres of the Kachi Plain in Baluchistan from Chashma Barrage.

Build the 8.5 maf multipurpose Guroh Dop Dam on Punjkora River to store 3 maf of its runoff. Divert 4 maf of floodwater in Guroh Dop Reservoir from Chitral River, through 22 Km tunnel by building Mikhani Dam and power generation of 1400 MW. This will control floods in Kabul River.

Control salinity in the Indus basin and reclaim lands by building surface and sub-surface tile drainage to evacuate injurious salts out of the area and maintain salt and water balance.

To mitigate Indian aggression, carry out Integrated Comprehensive Water Management of the 165 years old canal irrigation system that wastes about 45 maf to 50 maf of water, is incompatible with crop water requirements and is obsolete. The Canal System may be modernized to save water.

I further suggest unique substitute for Kalabagh Dam by building 100 feet low dam-cum-60 feet barrage over it. The site is three miles upstream of KBD into the Indus valley, leaving Soan River apart. This will store 3.4 maf of water repeatedly to be filled as the flow at this site is 93 maf. The aggregate storage could be between 6 maf to 9 maf. The project would serve as balancing Reservoir to produce more power at Tarbela and store released water at the Dam-cum-barrage Reservoir. It will produce 2000 to 6000 MW of hydropower on run-of-river with power houses located on both River Banks. The Royalty would be shared between NWFP and Punjab. The project will have indefinite life span. The beauty is that it requires no land acquisition, no land compensation and no population displacement. Refer to my Website fatehuk.blogspot.com for details.           

Copy to,

Chairman Indus River System Authority (IRSA) Government of Pakistan, Islamabad

  

 As the issues relate to water and the monitoring and distribution of water as per IRSA Act, therefore IRSA is concerned to regulate Indus River flows by damming the river as required by Water Accord paras 2, 4, 6, 7, and avoid all wastage from the 165 years old, wasteful and obsolete Canal Irrigation System as per para 14(e) of the Water Accord. IRSA has already demanded 22 maf of water. Under the circumstances, IRSA may write to the Government explaining the chronic issues of water shortage, flood havoc, and rapid silting of reservoirs, all relating to water in view of the Water Accord beside other affiliated issues like salinity of land. If lands are saline water will be of no use.     

Secretary, Water and Power Government of Pakistan, Islamabad

He is requested to find whose responsibility is to suggest which dam to built first and why and on what merits? The concerned organizations are WAPDA, IRSA, Planning Division, Ministry of Water and Power, four provincial irrigation departments and Agriculture department.  Kalabagh Dam and Akhori Dam are bad examples as these are rejected by Project consultants of KBD and Dr Pieter Lieftnick respectively. IRSA needs 22 maf of water and India has acquired the ability to store 38 maf of live storage that is also the full requirement of our Rabi crop. Let the Ministry ask these departments which dams would meet these huge storage requirements. It is pointed out that Bunji and Dassu are power dams on the Indus. You may be know there is no dam site on Kabul River, Jehlum River and Chenab River in Pakistan. How would we face this critical situation? It’s a matter of great concern and the Prime Minister be informed of the critical situation.

    

Minister for Water and Power, Government of Pakistan

Deputy Chairman Planning Commission Government of Pakistan

Prime Minister of Pakistan, Prime Minister House Islamabad

The President of Pakistan, President House Islamabad. 

The above are the problems with outlines for solutions explained in brief. I feel no attention would be paid to set them right as the lethargic tendency and poor governance show.

Please note that Floods like 2010  can ravage again and again during the Climate change any time and many time.

India has prepared itself for water war in silence. As a result Rabi water supplies would completely cut off, and famine would appear, people would die of hunger then bloody revolution would suddenly take place. Please wake up from slumber even now though late.

God bless Pakistan. God will not bestow miracle, so let us work hard honestly and correctly to overcome water shortage, power shortage, flood havoc, rapid silting of reservoirs and remove and control salinity.

If rapid salinity in soil is not evacuated and controlled, then water would be of no use. Healthy lands and proper water are the two basic inputs of irrigated agriculture. These provide food as well as jobs besides economic prosperity.