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To live and thrive with next drought
(By Makky Khan Vardag)

The successive climate induced drought conditions have always been a recurring unavoidable aspect of the arid regions of the world as are the heavy rainfall induced floods in the better endowed regions closer to the equator. Man has further aggravated the malady by his unwise use of the planet’s assets e.g. land, minerals, over population, over-cropping, destruction of natural vegetation and degradation of soil, wasteful use of all of nature’s bounties in an unbalanced splurge of overuse.

For a region with a time-immemorial memory printouts of drought "Dukaal" and calamity management; the present chaotic stop-gap efforts indicate a national memory switch-off from a history of repeated calamities and our collective evolutionary response. History records the initiation of huge development or defence projects phased over decades scheduled by administratively capable leadership to tide over multiple and regionally dispersed calamities.

It is high time to appreciate the need, the parameters, the effort, the solution, the disciplines involved, the economic size and its phasing and the financial management for handling the next climatic catastrophe without the present toll of widespread animal and human misery. An economically viable and self financing solution is envisaged in the development of mostly state lands in two locations in Balochistan which would cater to existing tourism needs of the near locality and also help to build up a haven for the affectees of the next and future droughts with preplanned habitation, forage, fuel-wood and gainful employment needs.

The central planners for drought, tourism, defence and economy, perhaps, could be interested to the extent of creating a fact-finding team of specialists to consider the potential and merits of both the Sanghan valley winter
resort and the Kerkh Summer Resort proposals. Thus if on the count of internal domestic tourism the proposals are found financially viable; the other benefits, of shelter for a number of clearly anticipated and catered for calamity victims (whether of nature or of hostility) would be an additional bonus at marginal financial implication.

The sales of state lands for urban and agricultural purposes, the toll tax recoveries from approach roads, the revenues from municipal and agricultural water as well as sundry resort taxes at both these tourist attractions should be adequate in the long term to cover the cost of the extra burden of drought haven development aspects.

NORTHERN BALOCHISTAN: Sanghan valley winter tourist resort. Drought prone areas covered Chagai, Kharan, Zhob and Loralai. Fifty miles south of Quetta in Sibi district lies a valley, sheltered all around by hills from the chilly
winter gussets, having 12 inches of rainfall, mostly in summer with generally clear and sunny winter skies. The Sanghan valley has 5000 acres of state owned agriculturally developable bottom land with nearly 15 cusec perennial water in the two snow and spring fed streams entering the valley from the north end which are developable by low cost storage, irrigation and micro hydel projects. The sunny winter and a summer with intermittent showers, the valley elevation above 2000 ft combined with assured irrigation water guarantees the
maximisation of horticulture, fodder crops as well as high priced vegetable seed growing.

Sanghan valley is easily approachable even now from Baber Kach on the Sibi-Harnai rail and road system while additional approaches are developable from Mach and the Degari-Narwar coalmine road. An 11 KV line can be
extended from Mach grid station to rejoin the existing system at Khost or the Degari coalmines feeder.

The basic concept is to develop a winter resort for Quetta with state infrastructure contribution and private sector resort development on enticing investment perks to create a new niche for the economy. The planning would set aside land levelling, forestation, range management, resort extension phases, mining and quarrying as well as terracing of the valley slopes by the drought affectees. Development of future drought refugee camp infrastructure in accordance to the needs and numbers of the sojourners-to-be catered for in the Sanghan valley drought haven will also need planning and implementation.

B) SOUTHERN BALOCHISTAN AND SINDH: (Kerkh Summer tourist resort)

Drought prone areas covered:- Khuzdar, Kachhi Plain, Kirther Kacho area and the Thar desert. The people of Sindh especially of the Indus right bank districts suffer without any rejuvenating escape to a summer resort from the dawn to dusk extreme temperatures, high humidity, breezeless, cloudless enervating summers.

No developable high elevation valley lies within the provincial and mental jurisdiction of the provincial government. Yet close by in Kerkh tehsil of Khuzdar lie vast parcels of state land with adequate water resources at an elevation of 6000 feet. A reasonable stretch of valley land in this plateau north of the Kirther range can be obtained from Balochistan on reasonable 99-year lease terms for the development of a summer resort for the province of Sindh.

This would result in additional sources of investment and revenue for Balochistan.

Extension of road communication, transport, power and labour utilisation opportunities would result without any outlay by the province of   Balochistan in this neglected backyard. Drought alleviation aspects of camping grounds,
habitation for the effectees, forestation, grazing grounds, job opportunities for labour similar to Sanghan would have to be developed by a joint bilateral commission on a mutually agreed shared investment by both the provinces. Once infrastructure for roads, power and food storage is created at Kerkh a near vicinity water storage project on the Gaj Nai in the Kirther range would be feasible and provide additional bonus to the resort attraction.

The controlled reservoir at a suitable location on the Gaj Nai with down stream irrigation channels and protection works would also help in rehabilitation of the Marchar Lake off-channel flood carryover system.

This Gaj dam in the Kirther Gorge would provide adequate water for forestation and pasturage development besides camping grounds towards creation of another drought victim haven in Dadu district for the Kacho and Thar drought affectees within the province of Sindh.

The Frontier Post 8/7/00