Dadu city is in a crisis these days owing to floodwater that has left it inundated. The threat was felt many days before the actual crisis began.
The trouble started with the close-by town of Khairpur Nathan Shah. Then came the rising water pressure in the Main Nara Valley (MNV) drain, also called the Right Bank Outfall Drain-1 (RBOD-I), near Johi. Within no time, Mehar and areas around the Manchhar Lake got flooded and then the Indus River burst its banks, causing massive inundation, destruction and devastation. On their own, people tried their level best to protect the cities, but it was a fight they never had any chance of winning. Where were the administrators when the threat was rising? The question begs an answer.
Although it is not the first time Sindh has found itself facing floods, no adequate measures were in place once water started flowing down from up north. It would take decades for the people of the province to recover from the disaster caused by recent floods. There is no end in sight to the misery of the impoverished.
LATIF SOOMRO
HYDERABAD
