M RAFIQUE GORAYA

LAHORE: The Punjab Irrigation department reopened its non-perennial irrigation canals on Monday for ten days to provide water for sowing of strategic Rabi crops including wheat, gram, tobacco, rapeseed, barley, mustard, sunflower, winter vegetables onion, garlic, tomato, fodder, for livestock and fruit orchards.

Punjab government has set an ambitious target of sowing of nation’s staple food i.e. wheat on 16.6 million acres of land besides grams and vegetables to ensure food security.

Punjab irrigation engineers told business Recorder that the department has prepared a revised schedule of running the water in the canals as the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) has anticipated that provinces will face 36 percent shortage of water during Rabi season instead of the early forecast of 20 percent.

The Irsa’s advisory committee has anticipated that the country will receive 23.96 MAF against the early estimation of 29.48 MAF water. In view of the new estimates, Punjab will get 12.6 MAF water against the earlier allocation of 15.72 MAF, they added. They said Irsa is presently releasing 45000 cusecs from Tarbela dam, 2900 cusecs water inflow in river Kabul, 30000 cusecs from Mangla dam and 8800 cusecs running water in the Chenab River for sowing the Rabbi crops across the country.

Talking to Business Recorder convener Punjab Water Council said the present devastating water crisis is due to bad management of the precious resource. The water regulatory body had been releasing extra water from the dams to generate cheap hydel electricity to please the rulers in September and October knowing very well that there have been 25 percent below normal rainfall during the 2017 monsoon season. He said there should have been left at least 13 MAF water in Tarbela and Mangla dams on 1st of November for sowing the important Rabbi crops where as only 5 MAF water is left for sowing and growing the winter crops and historic low flows in the four live rivers.