Sukkur Barrage

Sukkur Barrage (Urdu سكهر بئراج) is a barrage on the River Indus near the city of Sukkur in the Sindh province of Pakistan. The Barrage was built during the British Raj from 1923 to 1932 and was named Lloyd Barrage. The Sukkur Barrage, is the pride of Pakistan’s Irrigation system as it is the largest single Irrigation network of its kind in the world. It irrigates from Sukkur District in the North, to Mirpurkhas/ Tharparkar and Hyderabad districts in the South of Sindh, almost all parts of the Province except few. It is situated about 300 miles North East of Karachi, 3 miles below the Railway Bridge, or the Sukkur Gorge. The introduction of barrage-controlled irrigation system resulted in more timely water supplies for the existing cultivated areas of Sindh Province of Pakistan.

History

Sindh survives almost entirely on the water of the River Indus as there is very limited groundwater available. Rainfall in the province averages between 100 to 200 mm per year, while the evaporation rate is between 1,000 to 2,000 mm. Thus, Sindh is arid and it is only the Indus which irrigates otherwise barren lands of Sindh. Regular surveys have not been carried out to assess the availability of groundwater in the province. Various sources estimate that its volume is between three to five MAF scattered in 28 per cent of the geographical area of Sindh. However, some experts suggest it to be less than these estimates. This water is found mainly along the Indus water channels and in the few natural underground streams.

Sukkur

Sukkur , formerly Aror [ərōr] (Sindhi: اروڙ‎, Urdu: اروڑ) and Bakhar, is the 14th largest city of Pakistan and third largest city of Sindh province, situated on the west bank of Indus River in Pakistan in Sukkur District. However, the word Sakhar in Sindhi means "superior", which the spelling of the city's name in Sindhi suggests is the origin of the name. modern-day Sukkur was built by the British general Sir Charles Napier in the 1840s.

Administration

The city of Sukkur, as well as being Divisional and district headquarters, is the capital of Sukkur Division as a whole. Tehsils (Talukas) and contains many Union council.

Demographics

Sukkur is noteworthy in Sindh and Pakistan generally for its comparative tolerance towards religious and ethnic minorities. City is a multi ethnic and has a mix of Sindhis, Punjabis, Brahuis, Balochis and Pakhtuns. The independence of Pakistan in 1947 saw the influx of Muslims which include Urdu-speaking Muhajirs, Bandhani-speaking Rajputs from Rajasthan, Memons from Bombay, Gujrat and Kathiawar were migrated from India and settled here, mostly in the aftermath of anti-Muslim riots when Pakistan was carved out of India as the result of Muslim vote; the muslim population of India voted for their separate homeland, the Pakistan. While some of the Bandhani, Memons, and Punjabis were settled here before partition, i.e., the independence of Pakistan in 1947