'ANNUAL REPORT OF THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE BOMBAY PRESIDENCY, FOR THE YEAR 1908-1909' [‎121r] (103/132)

IRRIGATION.
S.1909-3
The embankments in this district are not stronc
69
enough and
The
District. The
bund, estimated to
One
sum
new
cost
ofw hicb ^^efthe flood^water nearly overtopped the bunds
in seve ral ca occurre a > of which three were due to the failure of masonry karia sluices.
gix breach £ oan d impracticable to close the others.
aS closed bn 1
„ f he land flooded from the breaches had already been submerged by the excessive
]ylucb °i , |. eve j that a considerable area has been sown on the floo^- 4 mi --
rainfelb snent on the river embankments in the Karachi
0 f Rs. 5y/2 to 54/2 of the Mulchand-Shahbander
t ® p r °s ress -
work for the Right Bank Canal Project was practically completed by the end
^IQOS and since then the preparation of the detailed plans and estimates has been in
^ | ge (jontour survey for the Choi Branch of the Begari Canal was completed and Surveys
- ■ Tlie c wag ma( ^ e w tth the surveys for the proposed Khelat Canal and Begdri Remodel-
good P^^-th the survey for remodelling the Baghar Canal in the Karachi District.
” There is nothing of importance to be recorded under this head.
Chap. IV.
phoduction
AND
DISTRIBUTI on.
Indus Lett Bank Division.
The canals on the left bank fall naturally into two groups (a) The Eastern Nara System Plantations.
in d (}) those taking off from the Indus direct.
Under (a) come the Nara River, the Jdmrdo, Mithrao, Heran, Khipro, Thar and Hiral
Canals of which the Khipro and Heran alone are inundation canals, the rest being perennial.
Under (b) come the Dad, Nasrat, Fuleli, Hasanali and a large number of smaller canals,
all being really inundation canals though the Euleli receives a certain amount of rabi water.
The Eastern Nara System*
The supply in the whole system was far from satisfactory. In the earlier part of the
season the low river level gave an insufficient supply. As soon as the river rose great floods from
Ghotki or Sarhad entered the Nara, extending as high up as 9th and 10th mile of the Supply
Channel, and ponding back the supply from the mouth, caused a heavy deposit of silt. When the
floods ceased the river fell very rapidly, and there was no time for this, silt to scour. Conse
quently the autumn supply was inadequate for the kharif crops and quite insufficient for rabi
crops. The supply failed and it was decided to close the Ndra Supply Channej, and clear it ^co
some extent. Accordingly, the channel was closed in the middle of November and Rs. 1,16,963
expended in excavating a channel 40 feet wide and about 4 feet deep. The Nara was opened
again on the 29th December ; but, owing to the extraordinarily low regime obtaining in the
river, the supply given by the new cut was too small to be of any appreciable use.
The only maintenance work worth noting in connection with the Nara is the raising and
strengthening of the Rata Bund, on which Rs. 35,365 were spent. This work was ampiy
justified in the flood season and helped greatly in controlling the floods, these floods leaehetc a
freight of 27 feet on the 12th mile gauge of the Nara Supply Channel on the l^th Augusu an ,
if not actually the highest known, were of longer duration than has been experienced for many
years.
Owing to the skilful way in which the floods were dealt with, which has already been
brought to the notice of Government, the damage resulting was very small; only some ll,»Ui/
acres of kharif were flooded, and the whole loss to Government^ including remission ot land
revenue and repairs to banks, is under Rs. 40,009. The cultivation direct from the c ranne o
“~ e Ndra shows a very large increase, 90,360 acres against 53,370, average of 10 years, entire y
ue to the great area of rabi grown after subsidence of the abnormally heavy floods.
O
t
The Jdmrao Canal.
most noticeable feature of the year on the Jamrao is the increase in t re aiea o cu *
34,910 acres, against a nine-year average of 226,785 acres), due to a arge mere
cultivation on account of the failure of the previous rabi, and to ad van age em^
; ^avy rainfall. The figures are rather misleading, however, as though the area ot^nanr
cry large, the crop produced was very poor on account of damage done y rai "
y and indirectly by the rain necessitating the closure of the eana o 1 o 1
se y affecting the better drained lands.
hhe 1 abi area was very small, to the serious inconvenience of the smaller Piinjabi * ^
fel^y 0 n their Winter crops. The bad rabi supply is also S wffiter
r f 1 anc b owners bad begun, three years ago, to appreciate the a van » laro’Q
• otl aac b a good rabi supply during these last three years would have m
11 ot the area under wheat.
» 1023-18