The technical committee of Indus River System Authority (Irsa), comprising senior provincial representatives, is likely hold an important meeting in Islamabad today to estimate water supply during the coming Kharif season, starting from April 1.
Sources in Punjab Irrigation Department told Business Recorder on Sunday that after finalisation of the estimates, the Irsa's advisory committee would draw up an irrigation plan and allocate water to the provinces according to their share under the 1991 Water Accord.
Earlier in its bi-annual meeting on 16th March, presided over by the Irsa Chairman, the committee had postponed finalisation of the water availability estimate for 2012-13 Kharif crops after it came to know that it was difficult to estimate water inflows due to persistent cold spell in northern areas. The officials expected that the situation would become clear during last week of March.
According to irrigation engineers, owing to depletion of Tarbela and Mangla dams, much below normal winter rains and very low flows in the four live rivers during the past two months, there would be water shortage of 15 to 25 percent during the early Kharif season.
They said presently Punjab was facing 50 percent water shortage and Sindh 50 to 70 percent as compared to last year's water availability in March.
Meteorological department reports suggest that glaciers and snow over the mountains have started melting slowly after rise in temperature. There has been an improvement of at least 10,000 cusecs water each in the flows of river Indus and Jhelum during the past five days. Director General Meteorological Department Dr Mohammad Hanif told this scribe that this year snowfall had been above normal, therefore, there would be steady supply of water for Kharif season.
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