Andar farmers seek release of water from Sarda Dam

GHAZNI CITY (Pajhwok): Farmers in the Andar district of southern Ghazni province have demanded the release of water from the Sarda Dam to irrigate their crops due to the shortage of rains this spring.

But officials said cleanliness of the dam’s canals was yet to be completed. They said they could not release water until the campaign was over.

Hameedullah, a farmer from Andar district, said the new government had started de-silting canals and pledged to release water from the dam. But the promise has not been kept yet.

He added this year there had been inadequate rains. Now is the time, according to him, to release water from the dam.

He said most growers had cultivated wheat on their lands, a crop that direly needed to be irrigated at this stage.

Mohammad Haroon, another farmer from Sultan Bagh area, said people had started digging wells and using solar power to irrigate farmlands.

He warned if the process continued, the underground water level could further drop. The release of water from Sarda Dam could address the issue, he believed.

Earlier, the government announced the launch of work on the second phase of Sarda Dam and pledged 35,000 acres of land would be irrigated by the dam.

The governor’s spokesman, Hafiz Umar Ghaznavi, said the work on the project that started a month ago was going on.

He linked the release of water from Sarda Dam to the completion of canals’ cleanliness. However, he did not give a specific date for the release of water.

Sarda Dam was constructed during the government of King Zahir Shah and Dawopd Khan. The reservoir has the capacity to irrigate 35,000 acres of land.

Owners of lands irrigated by the Sarda Dam provide the required amount of wheat to the Central Government Bakery. In addition, sunflower and beetroot are cultivated.

nh/mud