Breaches of bunds: Sindh government not interested in investigation of matter: IEP

The Institution of Engineers Pakistan (IEP) has alleged that Sindh government is neither interested in investigating into allegations of deliberate breaches of dykes and bunds during the recent devastating flood nor it has any plan to punish those responsible for the criminal offence.
"Government's intentions are clear from the constitution of an ineffective and useless judicial commission that is comprised of two former judges with no powers besides exclusion of professional engineers from the probing body" IEP Karachi Chairman Engr Jamshaid Rizvi and Engr Ayaz Mirza said in a joint statement on Wednesday. IEP office-bearers also demanded the government to constitute an autonomous and independent judicial commission with professional engineers as its members to probe into the allegations of deliberate breaches of dykes and bunds in Sindh.
Terming the two-member judicial commission formed by the government as an ineffective body and an effort to hoodwink people of Sindh, IEP Karachi Chairman and Secretary said despite offering their services, engineers from IEP were not only ignored in the process of reconstruction but also in investigating the allegations of man-made breaches in dykes and bunds.
Jamshaid Rizvi and Ayaz Mirza recalled that soon after the devastating floods in the country, engineers offered their services to the authorities as they were willing to play their role in relief and reconstruction efforts but deplored that government showed no interest in acquiring their assistance in this national cause.
They observed that investigations after natural and man-made disasters help nations in learning from mistakes and get professional recommendations to minimise both human and financial losses in case of any future calamities but the provincial government showed no interest in revealing mistakes and errors committed by its own machinery.
IEP representatives alleged that although the two-member judicial commission comprising former Justice Zahid Qurban Alvi and force Justice Ghulam Nabi Soomro had been constituted on public pressure but owing to its limited scope role and authority given to it, the commission was expected to come up without any concrete findings and recommendations.
It is feared that influential people and incompetent officials of Sindh Irrigation Department who were actually behind the criminal offence of breaching dykes and bunds will never be identified and punished due to formation of an ineffective judicial commission with no authority and clear mandate, IEP representatives feared.
Terming the judicial commission formed by the Punjab government that is comprised of a serving judge and two educationists from engineering varsities, they claimed that judicial commission formed by the Punjab government was expected reveal the real causes of breaches in dykes and identifying actual perpetuators of criminal offence.
Warning that more devastating floods were expected in Pakistan in years to come due to global warming and climate change, the government should have sought guidance from professionals like engineers and scientists to minimise loss of lives and properties incase of natural calamities in near future.
They demanded Sindh government to reconstitute the inquiry commission by including professional engineers into it to probe into breaches into the dykes and bunds in the province and further called for looking into the recommendations of IEP to mitigate human and property losses during calamities like floods and quakes.-PR