A delegation led by World Bank Team Task Leader Carlo Amadei met Senior Provincial Irrigation Minister Mir Sadiq Ali Umrani and Provincial Irrigation Secretary Hafiz Abdul Majid

Quetta, (Independent Report)
August 7, 2024: A delegation led by World Bank Team Task Leader Carlo Amadei met Senior Provincial Irrigation Minister Mir Sadiq Ali Umrani and Provincial Irrigation Secretary Hafiz Abdul Majid .

In the meeting Project Director BIWRMDP Engineer Barkat Ullah Kakar , Project Director ADB supported project Eng. Sufian Ali and
and other officials participated. The delegation gave a briefing to the Provincial Irrigation Minister and Irrigation Secretary regarding the ongoing project of Balochistan Integrated Water Resources Management and Development Project o the World Bank and the Government of Balochistan and informed that in this project the developmnt work is near to completion and after their completion the people of Nari and Porali water basin’s will be benefited in several ways. Irrigation system along with biodiversity will improve, command area and agriculture productivity improves , job opportunities and other durable impactes will be seen.

The delegation informed the minster that an integrated of 43 hydrometeorological networks including automatic weather stations, automatic rain gauges, instruments for measuring water flow in rivers and substations is being laid with financial and technical support from World Bank and the government of Balochistan. The team informed the Minster that by the installation of these hydrometeorological networks in different areas of the two water basin’s of which the Irrigation Department will be able to have a coherent and authentic data and these all installed systems will be owned by the Government of Balochistan Irrigation Department.

They also Informed the Minister and the secretary Irrigation that these installed systems will be responsible for measuring the Temperature, atmospheric humidity, wind speed, wind direction, atmospheric pressure, precipitation, solar radiation, visibility, dew point, soil moisture and temperature, water vapor, precipitation intensity and it’s speed, river water flow, its intensity and height, temperature of river water and its sedimentation, water quality including groundwater level and depth, water pumping pressure and pumping rate, and groundwater fluctuations moreover all other important information will be available .

The project team further told the provincial minister that under the project, with the financial and technical support of the World Bank and the provincial government, a water policy document has been presented to the higher authorities ft approval. They informed that it is one of its first in the province after the devolution.

On this occasion, Senior Provincial Minister Mir Sadiq Ali Umrani appreciated the services of the World Bank in Balochistan and said that such important projects related to the World Bank are very important and far-reaching results for the development process in the province. The minster assured that under the project, through the Department of Irrigation, they will ensure all possible measures to speed up the implementation of important policies and projects lwd by the World Bank.

He said that People’s Party government led by Chief Minister Balochistan Mir Sarfaraz Bugti amd the approval from the cabinet will give the people of Balochistan the first water act and it’s policy as a gift. He said that water rights were exploited in the province of having not appropriate policy . He said that soon the province of Balochistan will be able to have a water policy that will be compatible with its comprehensive and all contemporary requirements, where the province will protect its precious water resources and future action plan. He assured that this government will be able to achieve important milestones in policy making in water and other socio economic policies.

At the end the team thaked the Minister and the Secretary Irrigation.