A 2km stretch of the Nara Canal, the largest channel in Sindh’s irrigation network, has been lined to restore its original parameters, which were disturbed due to soil erosion. Nara Canal emanates from the Sukkur barrage, the oldest barrage in Sindh. The lining aims to improve water productivity in the Nara canal system that feeds the lower Sindh region and touches the desert region of Tharparkar.

From an engineering point of view, the lining was a work of important nature to ensure efficient flows with a gross cultivable area of 2.17 million acres and a cultivable command area of 2.1m acres. Nara’s main canal stretches over 226 miles, according to irrigation department figures, bringing water to major left bank districts like Sanghar, Mirpurkhas and Umerkot — a hub of mango orchards and sugarcane.

Nara Canal is part of the irrigation system managed by the Sindh Irrigation and Drainage Authority (Sida), a body that seeks to promote a participatory irrigation system. Sida has executed the project out of provincial government funding at a revised cost of Rs 4.25 billion — the project was initially planned at a cost of Rs 2.89 bn.

During the ongoing Rabi crop season, the channel was closed on Jan 6 this year ahead of the Sukkur barrage’s closure. Water supply in the canal resumed on Feb 4 with a discharge of 1,800 cusecs to enable growers to start preparing for Kharif season, which begins........

© Dawn Business