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Flood season has formally begun in the country, and water flows at Sindh’s barrages, which until recently had been reporting severe shortages, have improved. Yet, the tail-end areas of lower Sindh have, ironically, remained underserved, leaving farmers short of water. The situation perhaps merits a fair internal audit of water governance by the provincial irrigation department, as fair water distribution within the province continues to elude growers.
Sindh has rightly long cried hoarse over being denied its due share of water by the regulator during the early and peak kharif season because of the operation of disputed link canals. Sindh bears more shortage than Punjab.
Historically, Sindh has faced inadequate river flows during the early kharif season as the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) prioritised filling dams, compromising releases to the province. Irsa also attributed the shortfall to delays in Wapda’s ongoing works at Tarbela Dam, which disrupted supplies to all provinces.
Water releases remained delayed despite relatively healthier reservoir levels, with the situation turning critical by mid-June when Kotri Barrage recorded a 65pc shortage.
