Environmentalists advise scientific dredging, raising the Jhelum’s carrying capacity, and restoring the floodplains.
Srinagar: Due to the Union Territory of Jammu and Kashmir’s regular periods of heavy rain and the lack of mitigating measures, flooding is a serious hazard.
J&K has seen constant rainy periods over the last several weeks. The torrential rain brought back memories of the terrible floods in 2014 by raising the water level in the Jhelum River.
The summer capital of J&K, Srinagar, is the Union Territory’s most flood-prone location due to the river Jhelum’s flat geography, which spans 175 sq km of Kashmir from south to north. 2014 was the worst flooding in Srinagar. The summer capital is vulnerable to severe floods as a result of heavy downpours and topographical changes brought on by growing development.
The major irrigation supply for Kashmir, Jhelum, has suffered from severe siltation in recent years. Without any conservation efforts, the river’s carrying capacity had been reduced, and bottlenecks in the Baramulla area in northern Kashmir increased the danger of flooding in the Valley.
Jhelum, which originates in Verinag in south Kashmir, is joined by four streams in the Islamabad (Anantnag) district: Surendran, Brang, Arapath, and Lidder. In addition, the river receives freshwater from a number of little streams, including Veshara and Rambiara.
Jhelum flows in a serpentine pattern from southern Kashmir to northern Kashmir, where it settles in Wullar, the biggest freshwater lake in Asia, before flowing through Baramulla into Pakistan-occupied Kashmir (PoK). According to experts, the terrible flood of 1959 had backwater effects on Jhelum because Wullar Lake in north Kashmir had limited outflows since it had practically been strangled by high silt deposition and constrained outflow routes.
The wetlands on Jhelum’s left and right served as floodwater reservoirs. However, most of the wetlands have lost their carrying capacity during the last 50 years, mostly as a result of being turned into agricultural land or concrete landscape.
Hokersar, Bemina, Narakara, Batamaloo, Rakh-e-arth, Anchar Lake, and Gilsar are among the ecologically significant wetlands in the Jhelum floodplains that have been damaged by fast urbanisation and encroachment. From 288.96 sq km in 1972 to 266.45 sq km now, the overall area of the main wetlands in the Jhelum basin with an area larger than 25 hectares has dropped. Deterioration of wetlands has affected their capacity to absorb flood water. On flood plains, colonies have sprang up.
Environmentalists have suggested using scientific dredging to restore flood plains and boost the carrying capacity of the Jhelum. “Water bodies and river Jhelum have lost carrying capacity making J&K especially Kashmir Valley prone to floods,” Ajaz Rasool, a noted environmentalist, told Greater Kashmir.
Due to its terrain, the valley has been subject to floods for generations. In order to counter the effects of siltation caused by the loss of topsoil from the Jhelum’s contributing catchment, British engineers raised the river embankment and dredged the river from Sopore to Baramulla in 1903.
Ajaz, a hydraulic engineer by trade, said that erosion became worse as a result of forest licences and logging without compensating reforestation. In 1960, two mechanical dredges named Soya-1 and Budshah-were were commissioned after being inaugurated by the then Prime Minister of India, Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru to dredge steep river reach from Sopore to Baramulla.
This dredging lasted until the dredgers’ intended lifespan was reached in 1986. “Thereafter no dredging was done for 26 years resulting in siltation of river regime as also of Wullar lake fed by Jhelum which resulted in the lake losing 30 percent of its volumetric. The Wullar wetland lost its basic wetland function of absorbing flood water during high flows and releasing it in low flow time to act as a sponge,” he said.
The Irrigation and Flood Control Department procured and commissioned two modern cut suction dredgers in 2012 to resume the contingent maintenance dredging from Sopore to Baramulla. This was a successful initiative that generated enough money from the sale of dredged sand to cover the cost of the equipment and its upkeep.
“In 2014 the effect of Highest recorded flood was minimal in Sopore and Baramulla as a result of this. Further on the I&FC contracted for dredging in Srinagar reach of the River which proved futile and counter productive making the Government of India to issue advisory to stop it,” Ajaz said.
IF&C department has been working on Phase 1 of flood recovery project to repair breached sites of the river in 2014 floods and raise abutment and anti erosion works at vulnerable reaches. Now it is further working on Phase 2 to do works of permanent restoration of flood damages. “However the ultimate Project for futuristic management of floods in the valley in River Jhelum and its tributaries is being formulated by a Spanish company which would holistically address the measures to be taken in catchment and entire River regime. Once this is approved and funds made available to implement it on ground we can then only look forward to proper required flood control measures to be on ground. However, that seems to be a long wait,” Ajaz added.
The other problems of encroachments in Jhelum are under the scanner of the High Court in a PIL on floods filed by the Environmental Policy Group (EGP). The Court orders from time to time have been very effective for the purpose of flood control
To mention, on September 7, 2014, massive flow of water from higher reaches following heavy rainfall led to overflowing in Jhelum, Chenab, and Tawi basins causing devastating floods in J&K.
As per estimates flood water measuring about 120,000 cusecs had in 2014 floods surpassed the carrying capacity of Jhelum by five times. Flash floods in Jammu division had also caused massive destruction. Property worth crores of rupees was destroyed due to floods.
Kashmir valley is one of the most flood hazard-prone regions in the Himalayas. Surrounded by mountains, Kashmir has been witnessing frequent floods for centuries. It witnessed floods in 1903, 1929, 1948, 1950, 1957, 1959, 1992, 1996, 2002, 2006, 2010 and the last one was in 2014. The Irrigation and Flood Control Department had in 2009 sent Rs 2000 crore project to the Ministry of Water Resources for sanction. The project included many restoration works including improvement of Jhelum’s existing dredging of outfall channels, protection, and anti-erosion works and increasing hydraulic efficiency.
After the floods of 2014, the Government of India sanctioned the plan for comprehensive flood management of River Jhelum and its tributaries. The project was funded under the Prime Minister’s Development Package.
The flood management plan for river Jhelum was divided into two phases. Rs 399 Cr was sanctioned for the first phase to increase discharge carrying capacity of Jhelum from 31,800 cusecs to 60,000 cusecs. Despite repeated attempts, Chief Engineer I&FC (Kashmir) did not respond for his comments on flood mitigation measures.
