Daily Times

The overflowing water from Pakistan’s largest freshwater lake has reached the Indus Highway between Sehwan and Dadu and the area will soon be cut off, officials said on Tuesday.

The embankments of the Manchhar Lake were given two more cuts on Monday as the single breach given on Sunday failed to reduce the water pressure. A fourth breach in the lake’s embankment was made at Zero Point that may inundate many more areas including Bhan Sayedabad.

A drainage channel failed on Tuesday and three people, including a policeman, were swept away. In Dadu district, meanwhile, Mehar city is on the brink of being flooded as the water level rises around it.

Dozens of villages, situated near Zero Point of Manchhar Lake were inundated following the breach made by officials. The residents started evacuating their homes and carried whatever they could to save their possessions from flood waters. “Till yesterday there was enormous pressure on the dikes of Johi and Mehar towns, but people are fighting it out by strengthening the dikes,” district official Murtaza Shah said, adding that 80% to 90% of townspeople had already fled. Those who remain are attempting to strengthen existing dikes with machinery provided by district officials.

North of Manchhar Lake, in Dadu district floodwater level is constantly rising. At least three tehsils of Daddu – Johi, Khairpur Nathan Shah, and Mehar – have already been flooded. The tehsil headquarters of Khairpur Nathan Shah was the first to drown. Now, Mehar and Johi cities are at risk.

The panic was caused by the reports of the Main Narra Valley (NVM) Drain swelling up. The NVM Drain runs north-south and passes east of Johi city. The water from this drain falls into Manchhar Lake, which has already run out of capacity.

Member Sindh Assembly Pir Mujibur Rehman, who visited the drain, has said that a fresh flood torrent from Balochistan was headed towards Dadu and if flood water did not find a drainage path, there could be more destruction.