Building of ‘Koffer Dam’ at the damaged gate of Sukkur Barrage, what’s it?

Sindh Irrigation Minister Jam Khan Shoro has stated that the water flowing has been stopped via setting up a ‘cofferdam’ at the damaged gate quantity 47 of the Sukkur barrage and the water provide has began once more to all of the canals popping out of the barrage. has been achieved

Chatting with Unbiased Urdu, Jam Khan Shoro stated: ‘It has came about for the primary time within the historical past of Pakistan that within the month of June, when there may be one lakh cusecs of water within the Indus River on the Sukkur Barrage, in this sort of scenario, the Kufar Dam was once constructed to prevent the water within the canals. A brand new historical past has been made via re-watering in this sort of brief time period.’

In April 2024, the Irrigation Division of Sindh Province, with the reinforce of the Global Financial institution, began the ‘Rehabilitation and Modernization Challenge’ to switch all of the gates of the Sukkur Barrage, on which the Irrigation Division’s subsidiary ‘Sindh Barrages’ Growth Challenge’ set to work.

All through upkeep, at the night of June 20, Gate No. 47 of the Sukkur barrage collapsed, which officers stated was once brought about via the ‘hitting of a tree’ that was once swept together with the water.

And then the Irrigation Division imposed an emergency at the Sukkur barrage and closed the street passing above the barrage for all sorts of visitors whilst all of the gates of the barrage had been opened to scale back the water power at the closing gates. Additionally, it may be observed how a lot injury was once achieved to Gate No. 47.

In a similar way, the availability of water to all of the seven canals emanating from Sukkur barrage was once additionally stopped, of which 4 particularly Nara Canal, Rohri Canal, Khairpur Feeder East and Khairpur Feeder West at the left facet of the barrage whilst 3 canals at the proper facet Dadu Canal. , Rice Canal and North West Canal supplying water to Balochistan.

Kharif plants are being sown in Sindh right now and the blockading of canals was once being criticized as irreparable injury to Sindh’s agriculture.

In line with Jam Khan Shoro: ‘Inside a brief duration of 5 to 6 days, no longer most effective was once the waft of water from Gate No. 47 stopped via setting up a Kufar dam, however the kharif crop was once additionally stored via restarting the canals. ‘

What’s Coffer Dam?

In line with retired Sukkur Barrage engineer Sattar Sario, a cofferdam is a short lived watertight construction, which is constructed to dry a selected space underneath water in order that some roughly restore or development paintings will also be achieved there.

Chatting with Unbiased Urdu, Sattar Sario stated: ‘To build a brand new bridge or to fix an current bridge throughout a canal, river or sea, it is vital to dry the segment in order that engineers and laborers can construct or assemble it with equipment. Can restore. A construction built within the type of a dam to empty a selected space underneath water is known as a coffer dam.

He added that this construction is principally used throughout the development or restore of bridges, dams or different water buildings. The water within the Kufar dam is tired and dried, making it more uncomplicated for employees and equipment to paintings.’

In line with Sattar Sario, a coffer dam typically is composed of metal, wood or concrete panels that save you water from coming into. Sand is used as an alternative of clay to construct this dam as a result of clay washes away with water, whilst sand turns into more potent.

How was once the Coffer Dam built at Gate 47 of Sukkur Barrage?

Director of ‘Sindh Barrages Growth Challenge’ Ghulam Mohiuddin Mughal instructed Unbiased Urdu that ‘water was once ceaselessly flowing after gate 47 collapsed, because of which it was once no longer conceivable to fix the gate or set up a brand new gate. There was once no different option to prevent the waft of water, so the Kuffer Dam was once constructed.’

He additional knowledgeable that ‘the remaining week of December is selected to switch or restore a gate of the barrage, at the moment there may be an annual closure and the water within the river is low, however this was once an twist of fate, so In June, the Kufar Dam needed to be constructed in spite of the top waft of water within the Indus River.

In line with Irrigation Minister Jam Khan Shoro, this Kufar Dam has been built in entrance of Gate No. 47 within the downstream of Sukkur Barrage.

He additional stated that Sukkur barrage gate is 60 toes lengthy and 21 toes top, because of this that 21 toes of status water was once tied up with the assistance of sacks to construct the Koffer Dam, which was once an excessively tricky process.

In line with Jam Shoro, with the assistance of a crane, every sack of 3 thousand sacks of sand weighing two and a part heaps was once taken underneath 21 toes of water and the Kufar Dam was once constructed.

“The shipyard is construction a brand new gate which we will be able to get via July 20, and then the brand new gate can be put in,” he stated.

In line with Ghulam Mohiuddin Mughal, after the development of Kufar Dam, it is going to be closed with the assistance of ‘caisson gate’. (A caisson gate is a movable gate on any barrage, used as a short lived gate to fix or change a gate at the barrage).

In line with Ghulam Mohiuddin Mughal: ‘After the development of the Kufar Dam, the water within the dam is being pumped out, and then the engineers will first take away the damaged portions of the outdated gate after which the gate quantity 47 will damage and collapse. The outdated gate will have to be repaired and put in briefly, when the brand new gate comes, it is going to be put in after that.’

The brand new gate is being constructed at Karachi Shipyard. How will this 21 toes top and 60 toes lengthy gate be introduced from Karachi to Sukkur barrage? According to this, Ghulam Mohiuddin Mughal stated that ‘this gate is being in-built six portions, which can be simply put in from Karachi to Sukkur Barrage.’

Underneath this venture, the primary and historical Sukkur Barrage to be built at the Indus River can be repaired and 56 gates can be changed out of a complete of 66 gates.

New automated gates can be put in at Sukkur Barrage

The gates at Sukkur Barrage are opened and closed manually as an alternative of an automated gadget. If one gate of the barrage weighs 80 heaps, then a weight of 80 heaps is tied to its different facet.

To open or shut the gate, the barrage personnel open or shut the gate via decreasing the burden hooked up to the opposite facet of the gate with the assistance of the machines on most sensible of the barrage.

In line with Jam Khan Shoro: ‘It’s been virtually 100 years because the development of Sukkur Barrage. Now the barrage can not endure that a lot weight, so the brand new gates being put in now is not going to have a parallel weight at the different facet.

‘Those new gates can be machine-lifted as an alternative of parallel weights being moved up and down via hand, which can scale back the burden at the barrage and building up its existence.’