Water channel damage: power cut off, crops drying in Chitral villages

CHITRAL, June 27: The water channel to Singor Hydropower house was damaged on June 19 suspending power supply to the Chitral town. Standing crops are also drying up due to absence of water’ as the channel is also used for supply of water for irrigation purposes in Singor, Shahmiran and Balach villages. Despite repeated requests to WAPDA, power supply could not be restored even after the passage of more than one week. Residents of the area in an emergency meeting at the square Mosque decided to start work on the repair of the water channel on a self-help basis. Later, hundreds of people from Sinor, Shahmirandeh and Balach gathered at the site and started distillation work, removing stones and sand from the water channel. Retired assistant commissioner Miftahuddin on the occasion said due to apathy of WAPDA we are compelled to work on a self-help basis to restore the water channel not only for powerhouse but also for irrigation purpose. A number of local people also complained that some 57 employees were working in this powerhouse but even after nine days they did not bother to repair the channel. Another resident, Engineer Siar Khan told this scribe that they were trying their best to restore the power supply as well as irrigation water to the area because standing crops were drying.]]>