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English Sindh Text Book Board, Jamshoro.

20. THE GUDDU BARRAGE

Rivers have played a very important role in the life of man. They have served, as
trade routes from the earliest times. Before the building of roads and railways,
most trade was carried on by boats and ships along rivers. This was the reason
that most towns in ancient times were built near river.

In addition to this, rivers have served man in another way. Man, was dependent
on rains for growing crops, but there was no way to get rain water for irrigation
at the required time. Nor, could the rains be relied upon for the right amount of
water. It was only later that man learned to store rain water and use it for
agriculture in the dry season. Rivers had water in abundance, so man thought of
digging canals to get water from the rivers for irrigation. The system of canals
proved a better source of water supply, but it had one defect. When there was
shortage of water in the rivers during the winter season, the canals, would run
dry and the farmers, would be left without water for their crops.
Two problems posed by rivers are, how to get water from the rivers throughout
the year and how to escape the fury of floods. Barrages are the answer to these
problems.

A barrage, is a kind of wall which blocks the flow of water. It has gates, through
which the water is allowed to pass in a limited quantity. Its aim is to control
the flow of water in the flood season and store it in such a manner that the canals
can get water through out the year. In this way, farmers can be given water for
their fields, according to their needs. Life and property can also be protected from
the floods by controlling the flow of water. This system has been adopted and is
being used all over the world.

The Guddu barrage is one of the many barrages built in Pakistan. It is built on the
river Indus which flows almost the whole length of Pakistan.

The Guddu barrage, is built at a place where the river is fourteen kilometres in
width. It is designed to force the water spread over fourteen kilometres to pass
through a narrow barrage of about a kilometre. The barrage is 1355 metres in
length. It is made in such a way that a flood of about 1.2 million cusecs can pass
through it. The 7 metres wide road bridge over the barrage has reduced the road
distance between Lahore and Quetta. The distance, between Rahimyar Khan and
Kashmore has almost been halved. It has a system of three main canals, two on
the right bank and one/ on the left. The Begari Sindh Feeder and the Desert Pat
Feeder, are on the right bank and th Ghotki Feeder on the left bank. They are
among the biggest feeder canals of the world. The barrage is meant to irrigate an
area of 2.7 million acres.

Most of this area lies in the Sukkur and Jacobabad districts of Sindh and the rest
in the Kalat division of Baluchistan province. The grain output of this area is
expected to rise by half a million tons.

The Guddu barrage is one of the biggest barrages of Pakistan. It has also been
the most difficult to complete.

More than 5,000 engineers, technicians and labourers worked day and night to
complete it. It was put into operation on 4th February, 1962.

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