Gushing Rainwater Rivers have inundated many villages and standing crops cultivated over a vast area of Kotdiji Taluka
- Devastation has been caused due to criminal negligence of Small Dams Project of Sindh Irrigation Department officials as they didn’t build protective bund of Kurti River damaged by 2022 floods
Sindh Courier Report
Karachi, Sindh
The criminal negligence of the officials of Sindh Irrigation Department and its Small Dams Project, has once again caused the disaster in various union councils of Kotdiji Taluka of Khairpur district, where the gushing rainwater rivers have inundated many villages and standing crops of cotton and banana cultivated over a vast area.
“The deluge is the result of breaches in protective embankments occurred during 2022 heavy rains, which had not been plugged despite repeated requests by the area people. The heavy rain has lashed this area again since the morning of August 16, 2024, which has caused flood and the water from Kurti and other rainwater rivers is flowing through the breached embankment,” Mr. Bashir Mallah, a social activist and notable of Union Council Naseer Fakir Jalalani, told Sindh Courier on phone.
Mr. Mallah told that Professor Liaquat Ali Bozdar, resident of Village Ratal Shaheed, also has sent ‘SOS’ drawing attention to the critical situation in the area due to the ongoing flooding caused by the Kurti River. “For the past 36 hours, floodwaters have continuously flowed, threatening the villages of Karim Bux Bhambhro, Atta Muhammad Bhambhro, and Ratal Shaheed. The rising water levels pose a significant risk of damage to these villages, and over 1,000 acres of cultivated land have already been submerged. In the light of this severe situation, I urgently appeal to the authorities to take immediate action to stop the floodwaters from the Kurti River. Additionally, I request prompt assistance for the affected families who are in dire need of support,” the SOS mentions, which Mr. Mallah shared adding that he immediately had shared the SOS with Sindh Chief Secretary, Commissioner Sukkur Division and the Deputy Commissioner of Khairpur, and the action is awaited.
Mr. Mallah said that all the union councils of Kotdiji Taluka were devastated during heavy rains but the concerned authorities did not take any action. He also shared the scanned copies of villagers’ applications and the official letters as evidence.
The villagers, in their application submitted to the Chief Engineer, Small Dams Project of Provincial Irrigation Department in 2023, had stated that Naseer Fakir Jalalani is the last village of Taluka Kotdiji located between Mirwah Canal and the sand dunes and the hills of Nara Taluka, and the entire area is inundated whenever there is rain, as the rainwater flows down from the Nara Hills in the shape of Rainwater Rivers, locally called ‘Nai’, causing damage to the village houses and crops.
“The local government authorities of Khairpur had built a protective embankment at Kurti River, named as Kurti Bund, some two decades back, to save this area from devastation. However, the torrential rains of 2022 totally damaged the protective bank with the result that there was deluge in the entire area and seventy percent houses and agricultural lands of different villages were destroyed and the floodwater remained stagnant for several months,” the villagers stated in application requesting immediate repair of the protective embankment to save the villages and crops from future damage.
The villagers had also lodged a complaint with Sindh High Court Sukkur Bench and raised the issue during a public hearing at Kotdiji and subsequently, taking serious notice, Sindh High Court Sukkur Bench had constituted a committee headed by a Director of Provincial Disaster Management Authority (PDMA), vide letter date February 8, 2023, which visited the affected area, and directed the irrigation department for preparing feasibility of the embankment. Consequently, the Executive Engineer Irrigation, Khairpur wrote a letter dated March 7, 2023 to the Chief Engineer Small Dams for preparing the feasibility of constructing a small protective bund immediately. The Chief Engineer Small Dams had assigned the Executive Engineer Small Dams to visit the affected area, who after a detailed visit, wrote a report dated March 14, 2023, sent to the Superintending Engineer, Small Dams, stating that four to five rainwater streams discharge water into Kurti River which causes devastation. He affirmed that is feasible to construct dams to save the area.
“Unfortunately, the concerned authorities did not build or repair the dam. Even, with the start of current monsoon season, the authorities were again approached, and on the request of villagers, the Assistant Commissioner Kotdiji wrote a letter to the Deputy Commissioner Khairpur, who in turn sent letter to the Secretary Irrigation but no action was taken and the slackness has caused the deluge and destruction,” Mr. Bashir Mallah said sharing the official correspondence.
Read also – Floods 2022: Relief Support was Politically Influenced – SHRC
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