Efforts on to keep floodwaters out of Dadu power station

DADU/DERA ISMAIL KHAN: Authorities are scrambling to protect a vital power station supplying electricity to millions of people against a growing threat of flooding, officials said on Monday, taking steps such as building a dyke in front of it.

The electricity station in the district of Dadu in Sindh, one of the country’s worst affected areas, supplies power to six provincial districts. Troops were busy strengthening a dyke built in front of the station. “All preventive measures have been taken already to save the grid in case any flooding happens,” Syed Murtaza Ali Shah, a top district official, told Reuters. The comment followed orders from Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, reported by state broadcaster Radio Pakistan, to ensure the 500kV power station did not get flooded.

Meanwhile, the Indus River is in high flood at the Kotri Barrage with water inflow surging to 607,800 cusecs and outflow in the downstream is 581,900 cusecs. The river water is exerting pressure on the barrage and dykes from Dadu to Thatta and Sujawal, irrigation sources said.

Several union councils and urban areas of Jamshoro and Kotri have submerged by the river water. Floodwater has entered homes and people are facing hardships. The recent heavy rains and flash floods damaged over 350 school buildings that also caused disruption in educational activities in some areas of Dera Ismail Khan district.

An official in the district education department said that the recent rains and floods had damaged around 257 male and 87 female schools in all five tehsils of the district.

Meanwhile, Federal Minister for Poverty Alleviation and Social Safety and Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) Chairperson Shazia Marri said the BISP has so far disbursed over Rs23 billion among 946,813 affected families in a short span of time.