With the release of the Flood Inquiry Commission's detailed report, submitted to the Supreme Court, it has become evident the malaise of corruption, negligence and failure to perform tasks responsibly led to the breach of the Tori Dyke during the last year's devastating floods. Though the report states that the breach was not intentional, but it cost the loss of more than 850 billion rupees, besides a loss of one additional Rabi crop in Jaffarabad district of Balochistan.
The commission, under the supervision of former Chief Secretary of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Azam Khan, was formed to investigate the allegations that the breach in Tori Dyke was intentionally made to divert floodwaters to Balochistan, in order to save the Shahbaz Airbase at Jacobabad.
The findings of the report read like a sordid tale of greed, negligence and incompetence of the authorities involved. It states that the "Tori bund had suffered years of neglect in maintenance that eroded its height to a dangerous level long before the flood season last year," yet no precautionary measures were taken. The commission blamed the Chief Engineer, Guddu, camped at Tori Rest House, and his team, especially the XEN in-charge, for losses in Sindh and Balochistan.
The commission also commented on the early flood warning system, citing that Pakistan does not own adequate technology which can help in identifying the risks. This is another point while building the case of negligence against the concerned authorities. It has been more than nine months since the floods caused unprecedented damage to the crops, communication and lives of Pakistani citizens.
However, no attention has been paid to improve the capability of the meteorology department. Even now, as cited by the report, the meteorology department can only forecast up to three to four days in advance and with only seven radars in the country. It is also unable to provide any coverage in the north-west of the country and Balochistan and the coastal belt of 960 kilometres.
It must be noted that there is a provision in law which forbids any settlement within 200 feet of the river bank for the safety of the people. However, the concerned authorities allowed illegal encroachments along the bank to go unchecked which caused more damage once the floodwaters arrived. Not only that, some corrupt elements in the government were also involved in selling acquired land in the pond area to raise revenues.
The report also cited the construction of highways, which now effectively operate as bunds thus causing the natural flow of the floodwaters to be diverted. The concerned ministry responsible for the planning of the motorway and highways must also be held accountable for not leaving adequate "crossing bridges" meant for the drainage of water to the rivers.
Initially, Tori Dyke was 17-foot tall and 20-foot wide but due to erosion and neglect over the time, plus last-minute misdirected attempt to remove earth from its crest to fill deep pits on the riverside of the bund in the wee hours of August 6/7 last year, further reduced its height.
This was a gross violation of specified guidelines for the protection of dykes, which the public interpreted as a deliberate attempt to cause a breach. However, some improvement has been seen since last year. According to recent news reports, the Tori Dyke is under repair with plans to increase the height by another 6 feet and width by another 30-foot. Ninety percent of repair work is completed with a constant monitoring by the people who were directly affected last year.
The bottom line, however, remains that the commission performed its task diligently and honestly. It is very encouraging that the Supreme Court has ordered that strict actions must be taken against those held responsible for the Tori Dyke disaster. The court has further ordered both the federal and provincial government to ensure that the recommendations of the commission are implemented. The ball now is in the relevant authorities' court to ensure transparent steps to avoid any such catastrophe in future.
A proper mechanism must be developed which can ensure periodic inspection of dykes for repairs. Importantly, funding must be allocated to the meteorology department so they can equip themselves with the latest, state-of-art equipment to prevent the unmitigated disaster, which afflicted Pakistan last year.
It is the right of these people to demand preventable measures from the government to ensure their lives and property are as safe as humanely possible. Additionally, being an agricultural country, we cannot afford to lose entire season's worth of crops due to selfish mindset and short-sightedness of some influential people.
It is imperative that exemplary punishment be meted out to those who are found responsible for the massive loss due to their incompetence and greed. But above all, the government needs to ensure that all hiring in the government departments be on merit, rather than political affiliations. Unless there is a clear and an uncompromising will of those in power to work for the betterment of the people, no report or notices will provide a long-term solution. The report was particularly scathing against illegal encroachments, which had been allowed to go unchecked by the authorities concerned due to negligence, corruption and poor management.
The findings of the report read like a sordid tale of greed, negligence and incompetence of the authorities involved. It states that the "Tori bund had suffered years of neglect in maintenance that eroded its height to a dangerous level long before the flood season last year," yet no precautionary measures were taken. The commission blamed the Chief Engineer, Guddu, camped at Tori Rest House, and his team, especially the XEN in-charge, for losses in Sindh and Balochistan.
The commission also commented on the early flood warning system, citing that Pakistan does not own adequate technology which can help in identifying the risks. This is another point while building the case of negligence against the concerned authorities. It has been more than nine months since the floods caused unprecedented damage to the crops, communication and lives of Pakistani citizens.
However, no attention has been paid to improve the capability of the meteorology department. Even now, as cited by the report, the meteorology department can only forecast up to three to four days in advance and with only seven radars in the country. It is also unable to provide any coverage in the north-west of the country and Balochistan and the coastal belt of 960 kilometres.
It must be noted that there is a provision in law which forbids any settlement within 200 feet of the river bank for the safety of the people. However, the concerned authorities allowed illegal encroachments along the bank to go unchecked which caused more damage once the floodwaters arrived. Not only that, some corrupt elements in the government were also involved in selling acquired land in the pond area to raise revenues.
The report also cited the construction of highways, which now effectively operate as bunds thus causing the natural flow of the floodwaters to be diverted. The concerned ministry responsible for the planning of the motorway and highways must also be held accountable for not leaving adequate "crossing bridges" meant for the drainage of water to the rivers.
Initially, Tori Dyke was 17-foot tall and 20-foot wide but due to erosion and neglect over the time, plus last-minute misdirected attempt to remove earth from its crest to fill deep pits on the riverside of the bund in the wee hours of August 6/7 last year, further reduced its height.
This was a gross violation of specified guidelines for the protection of dykes, which the public interpreted as a deliberate attempt to cause a breach. However, some improvement has been seen since last year. According to recent news reports, the Tori Dyke is under repair with plans to increase the height by another 6 feet and width by another 30-foot. Ninety percent of repair work is completed with a constant monitoring by the people who were directly affected last year.
The bottom line, however, remains that the commission performed its task diligently and honestly. It is very encouraging that the Supreme Court has ordered that strict actions must be taken against those held responsible for the Tori Dyke disaster. The court has further ordered both the federal and provincial government to ensure that the recommendations of the commission are implemented. The ball now is in the relevant authorities' court to ensure transparent steps to avoid any such catastrophe in future.
A proper mechanism must be developed which can ensure periodic inspection of dykes for repairs. Importantly, funding must be allocated to the meteorology department so they can equip themselves with the latest, state-of-art equipment to prevent the unmitigated disaster, which afflicted Pakistan last year.
It is the right of these people to demand preventable measures from the government to ensure their lives and property are as safe as humanely possible. Additionally, being an agricultural country, we cannot afford to lose entire season's worth of crops due to selfish mindset and short-sightedness of some influential people.
It is imperative that exemplary punishment be meted out to those who are found responsible for the massive loss due to their incompetence and greed. But above all, the government needs to ensure that all hiring in the government departments be on merit, rather than political affiliations. Unless there is a clear and an uncompromising will of those in power to work for the betterment of the people, no report or notices will provide a long-term solution. The report was particularly scathing against illegal encroachments, which had been allowed to go unchecked by the authorities concerned due to negligence, corruption and poor management.
Source: Business Recorder 12 June 2011
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