HYDERABAD: The Sindh Abadgar Board (SAB) on Sunday said that incidents like the collapse of two gates of the Sukkur barrage are not repeated in the future because such disasters badly affect the agricultural economy.
A meeting of the board, chaired by Senior Vice President Mahmood Nawaz Shah at SAB’s office here noted that though the barrage was made operational in a span of 9 days after the gates were washed away, the episode caused huge losses to the farmers.
The growers in the meeting expressed deep concerns about the damage to the gates of the barrage, emphasizing that the pivotal role of barrages in the economy of the country should not be overlooked.
“Sukkur barrage in this context is the most important and one of largest barrages in the world,” the farmers said, adding that damage to that engineering structure could not just affect 8 million acres of land in its command but could also impact downstream Kotri barrage and its command areas.
“These two barrages won’t not only impact the agriculture sector but will also have a spiralling negative effect on the industry and exports including the country’s textile industry and food exports,” Shah cautioned.
The SAB suggested that the Sindh Irrigation Department should switch to the latest technology which was currently in operation of the barrages globally.
That technology included sensors and telemetry for effective monitoring and operation of barrages while with the help of artificial intelligence weather data could be linked with water arrivals.
The mango growers at the meeting highlighted that the Sindhri variety of mango, which was one of the largest exported mangoes from Pakistan, does not mature before the first week of June.
The farmers pointed out that if immature mangoes are exported they did not develop proper sweetness, colour and its natural flavor which, consequently, led to unsatisfied customers.
Dr Zulfiqar Yousfani, Dr Bashir Nizamani, Mohammed Aslam Mari, Imran Bozdar, Taha Memon, Ali Mardan Shah, Murad Ali Shah Bukerai, Kazi Mohsin and other growers attended the meeting.