5/5 Latif Hyder W. 5 years ago on Google
Sukkur
Barrage ( سکر
بئراج, سکھر
بیراج)
is
a barrage on
the River
Indus near
the
city
of Sukkur in
the Sindh province
of Pakistan.
The
Barrage
was
built
during
the British
Raj from
1923
to
1932
and
was
named Lloyd
Barrage.
The
Sukkur
Barrage,
is
the
pride
of
Pakistan’s
Irrigation
system
as
it
is
the
largest
single
Irrigation
network
of
its
kind
in
the
world.
It
irrigates
from Sukkur District
in
the
North,
to Mirpurkhas/ Tharparkar and Hyderabad districts
in
the
South
of Sindh,
almost
all
parts
of
the
Province
except
few.[3]It
is
situated
about
300
miles
North
East
of
Karachi,
3
miles
below
the
Railway
Bridge,
or
the
Sukkur
Gorge.
The
introduction
of
barrage-controlled
irrigation
system
resulted
in
more
timely
water
supplies
for
the
existing
cultivated
areas
of Sindh Province
of Pakistan.
Sindh survives
almost
entirely
on
the
water
of
the River
Indus as
there
is
very
limited
groundwater
available.
Rainfall
in
the
province
averages
between
100
and
200
mm
per
year,
while
the
evaporation
rate
is
between
1,000
and
2,000
mm.
Thus,
Sindh
is
arid
and
it
is
only
the
Indus
which
irrigates
otherwise
barren
lands
of
Sindh.
Regular
surveys
have
not
been
carried
out
to
assess
the
availability
of
groundwater
in
the
province.
Various
sources
estimate
that
its
volume
is
between
three
and
five
MAF
scattered
in
28
per
cent
of
the
geographical
area
of
Sindh.
However,
some
experts
suggest
it
to
be
less
than
these
estimates.
This
water
is
found
mainly
along
the
Indus
water
channels
and
in
the
few
natural
underground
streams.
The
idea
of
Sukkur
Barrage
was
conceived
by
Mr.
C.A.
Fife,
in
the
year
1868.
However,
the
project
was
finally
sanctioned
in
1923.
It
was
constructed
under
the
overall
direction
of Sir
Charlton
Harrison, CIE,
as
chief
engineer,
while Sir
Arnold
Musto,
CIE,
was
the
architect
and
engineer
of
the
scheme.[6] The
Head
Works
and
Canals
were
completed
by
1932.
On
its
completion
it
was
opened
by His
ExcellencyThe
1st
Earl
of
Willingdon, Viceroy
of
India.
The
scheme
had
been
launched
by
the Governor
of
Bombay, Sir
George
Lloyd (later
known
as Lord
Lloyd),
and
it
was
named
in
his
honour.
To
revitalise
its
water
storage
capacity
and
distribution
efficiency,
the Government
of
Pakistan embarked
upon
a
massive
rehabilitation
work
of
Sukkur
Barrage.
The
work
was
started
by Pakistan
Army
Engineering
Corps and Frontier
Works
Organisation (FWO)
on
22
November
2004,
and
was
completed
ahead
of
the
deadline
in
July
2005,
with
the
cost
of
just
15
million
US$
(US
Dollars).
Experts
believe
that
the
rehabilitation
of
the
barrage
has
enhanced
its
efficiency
for
another
60
to
70
years
Biggest
heritage
of
Sindh
