Indian Aqua Bombs At the time of independence, though major portion of the Indus basin (31 Million Acers) formed part of Pakistan, however the control of most of existing structures on the rivers of Indus Basin fell into the Indian hands, being upper riparian. The consequences of such an unfair demarcation surfaced soon after when India started interfering with the waters flowing downstream by stopping waters on rivers Ravi and Sutlej(irrigating 1.6 Million Acres in Pakistan) from 1st April 1948. The stress, which subsequently mounted in the region, was felt down around the globe and in 1951 World Bank offered its good office for resolution of the issue. The treaty, the result of a decade of painstaking of negotiations that ended in 1960, gave Pakistan 80% of the waters in the Indus river system a ratio that nationalists in Pakistan often forget. India the upper river nation was permitted to use some of the water for forming, drinking and power generation as long as it does not store too much. India has been allotted exclusive control/right over the waters of the eastern rivers, namely; Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej. Pakistan controls the water of three Western rivers; Indus, Jhelum and Chenab. The qualification is that this use of hydropower is not to affect the quantity of water reaching Pakistan or to interfere with the natural timing of those flows. Since hydropower does not
munirahmedbaloch@hotmail.com by: Munir A Baloch
consume water, the only issue is timing. And timing is a very big issue, because agriculture in the Pakistani plains depends not only on how much water comes, but that it comes in critical periods during the planting season. This treaty barred India from storing any water or constructing any storage works on the western rivers that would result in a reduced flow of water to Pakistan. The problem between the two countries arose when India decided to build a dam on the Kishanganga River that originates in Indian Occupied Kashmir. The Kishanganga river assumes the name of Neelum river upon entering in the Azad Kashmir. The Indian design to construct dams on Pakistani rivers will diminished the flow of Jhelum during the vital Rabi crop-sowing season threatening Pakistan’s agrobased economy and throwing the fate of dismal farmers in the abyss of absurdity. In May 1992,India supplied information about Baglihar Hydro electric project located about 147 Kilometers upstream of Marala Head works on river Chenab in district Doda. The project envisaged the construction of a concrete gravity dam with a gross storage capacity of about 0.32 MAF. The Baglihar was commissioned in 2008. During its initial filling, India violated the clauses of treaty by not filling the dam in stipulated time frame
and by not ensuring requisite inflow at Marala head works of Pakistan. The drastic reduction of inflow at Marla had following adverse impact on Pakistan. Closure of Marala- Ravi Link Canal, which resulted in non-availability of irrigation water for paddy crops in Marala Command canals area covering over 10,000,000 acres of land. Reduced filling of Mangla Dam due to excessive drawing of water from it to cover the deficiency of waters at Marala Headworks. Reduce filling of Mangla Dam resulted into acute shortage of water for Rabi ( Autumn/ Winter crops. As per paragraph 18 and 18(c) of annexure E of Indus water Treaty 1960, India has committed following gross violations of the treaty:- Violation committed by the India(a) Failed to provide initial filling plan. Did not ensure continues inflow of 55,000 cusecs at Marala. C) Carried out initial filling even after 31 August 2008. Impact of Low Inflow:The reduced inflow at Marala had following adverse impact on Pakistan:-(a) Closure of MaralaRavi Link Canal. (b) Non availability of irrigation water for paddy crops in Marala Command canals area. The total effected area is approximately over one Crore acres of land. (c)reduce filling of Mangla Dam. (d) Acute shortage of water for Rabi Crops
Inventions – The Golden Age We all know who discovered gravity...Newton. We all know who invented radio.....Marconi. But do we know who invented soap? Hazrat Saleh aleh salaam. Do we know who invented the bridge? Hasrat Yusuf aleh salaam. Do we know who invented the boat? Hazrat Nooh aleh salaam. Do we know who invented the mirror? Hazrat Suleman aleh salaam. Do we know who invented the needle? Hazrat Idrees aleh salaam. Do we know who invented the comb? Hazrat Ibrahim aleh salaam A number of inventions were developed in the medieval Islamic world, a geopolitical region that has at various times extended from Spain and Africa in the west to the Indian subcontinent in the east. The inventions listed here were developed during the medieval Islamic world, which covers the period from the early Caliphate to the later Ottoman, Safavid and Mughal empires. In particular, the majority of inventions here date back to the Islamic Golden Age, which is traditionally dated from the 8th to the 13th centuries. Muslim civilisation stretched from southern Spain as far as China. From the 7th century onwards, scholars of many faiths built on the ancient knowledge of the Egyptians, Greeks and Romans, making breakthroughs that paved the way for the Renaissance. Westerns who called these periods the dark ages was the Golden Age
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of Muslim scientists. The discoveries made by men and women in Muslim civilisation have left their mark on the way we live today. The history of inventions uncovers a thousand years of science and technology that has a huge but hidden impact on the modern world. Surgery....around the year 1000 the celebrated doctor Al Zahrawi published a 1,500 page illustrated encyclopaedia of surgery that was used in Europe as a medical reference for the next 500 years. Among his many inventions, Al Zahrawi discovered the use of dissolving cat gut to stitch wounds... beforehand a second surgery had to be performed to remove sutures. He also reportedly performed the first caesarean operation and created the first pair of forceps. Coffee...now the western worlds drink du jour, coffee was first brewed in Yemen around the 9th century. In its earliest days, coffee helped Sufis stay up during late nights of devotion. Later brought to Cairo by a group of students, the coffee buzz soon caught on around the empire. By the 13th century it reached turkey, but not until the 16th century did the beans start boiling in Europe, brought to Italy by a Venetian trader. Flying machine....Abbas Ibn Firnas was the first person to make a real attempt to construct a flying machine he designed in the 19th century. University....in 859 a young princess named Fatima Al Firhi
founded the first degree-granting university in fez, Morocco. Algebra....Al Khwarizmi was the first to introduce the concept of algebra in mathematics. The same mathematician, Al-Khwarizmi, was also the first to introduce the concept of raising a number to a power. Optics.... many of the most important advances in the study of optics come from the Muslim world. Around the year 1000 Ibn AlHaitham proved that humans see objects by reflecting off of them and entering the eye, dismissing Euclid and Ptolemy’s theories that light was emitted from the eye itself. This great Muslim physicist also discovered the camera obscurer phenomenon. Toothbrush....the Prophet Muhammad (SAW) popularized the use of the first toothbrush in around 600. Using a twig from the meswak tree he cleaned his teeth and freshened his breath. Substances similar to meswak are used in modern toothpaste. Hospitals...hospitals as we know them today, with wards and teaching centres, come from 9th century Egypt. The first such medical enter was the Ahmad Ibn Tulun hospital, founded in 872 in Cairo. Tulun hospital provided free care for anyone who needed it – a policy based on the Muslim tradition of caring for all who are sick. From Cairo, such hospitals spread around the Muslim world.
If Baglihar was the only dam being built by India on the Chenab and Jhelum, this would be a limited problem. But following Baglihar is a veritable caravan of Indian projects—Kishanganga, Sawalkot 1200MW, Pakuldul stage 1&2,1020MW, Bursar1020MW, Dal Huste 780MW, Gysp, Kiru 430MW, Ratle 560MW, Kirthai stage1&2,600MW,Shamnot 370MW, Naunt 400MW, Barinium 240MW, Patam 60MW, teling 81MW, tinget 81MW,Miyar 90MW, tandi 150MW, Rashil 150MW, Dugar 360MW, Chhatru 108MW, Khoksar 90MW, Seli 150MW, Bardang 114MW, Sachkhas 210MW, Gondhala 144MW, Reoli 715MW,Baglihar phase-1,450MW, Salal 690MW,, Dulhasti 780MW, Rajouri 3MW, Killer 0.3MW, Thirot 4.5MW, Shansha 0.2MW,Billing ).1MW, Sissu0.10MW, Chinani-11,2MW, Bhadarwah 1MW, Uri, Lower Jhelum, Sambal, Pahalgam, Asyhan, Bandipura, Dachhigam, Karan, Kamah, Mactchil, Parnal, Poonch, Upper sind hydro electric power plant. Using Baglihar and Kishenganga as a reference, simple backof-the- envelope calculations, suggest that once it has constructed all of the planned hydropower plants (AQUA BOMBS)India will have an ability to effect major damage on Pakistan.The Indian Government awarded contract for construction of Kishenganga Dam jointly to the Hindustan Construc-
tion Company Ltd and British Firm Halcrow Group Ltd. The Indian Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs approved the revised cost from Rs.22.39 Billion to Rs.36.42 Billion.According to details of the contract negotiated between the National Hydro-Electric Corporation and the representative of HCC and Halcrow, the project will be completed and commissioned in 84 months. The company is currently also developing five other infrastructure projects including three Hydel Power Projects-Chutak (Kargil), Nimoo Bazgo (leh) and URI-11- in addition to the 84- kilometer Mughal Road, connecting Poonch with Indian-held Kashmir. The Kishenganga project envisages diversion of river Jhelum. The water of river Neelum(Kishenganga) is reserved for Pakistan;s NeelumJhelum Hydro electric project, work on which started in 1989. The diversion of water in Kishenganga project will have adverse effects. Water flow at Neelum- Jhelum project will decrease and generation capacity of Neelum- Jhelum project will reduced by 20%. The Indian plans include storing water and then tunneling it to the Wullar Lake, where it is constructing a 800MW power house. India has almost completed a 22-kilometer long tunnel to divert Kishanganga waters to Wullar Lake in Jammu and Kashmir. Pakistan maintains that India, under the treaty, can store water but it cannot divert it
to any other side. Thus, any diversion would violate the provisions of the treaty. The basic idea behind the construction of Wullar Barrage was that India wanted to create additional storage in the Wullar Lake, which would be utilized to augment the water flow to their Lower Jhelum Hydroelectric Plant and Uri Hydroelectric Plant during the winter season when the inflows decreases. The construction of Wullar Barrage would provide India the control over River Jhelum which they may use to deprive Pakistan during winter seasons. Besides above mentioned disputes, a number of hydroelectric projects of various capacities are being planned by India on the rivers reserved for Pakistan to further choke the water flow. These include 24 projects on River henab,52 on River Jhelum and 18 on River Indus.Thus Pakistan’s agriculture and hydropower generation is under further threat. Pakistan believes that all these completed or ongoing projects including Baglihar, Kishenganga hydro power projects and Wullar Barrage can be used as (1) a geo strategic weapon (2) potential to disrupt the triple canal project of Pakistan (3) badly affecting the Neelum- Jhelum hydropower project (4) agriculture in Azad Kashmir (5) drying the lands of Pakistan Not by using the Nuclear Bombs but using her ‘’AQUA BOMBS”
Sheffield Candidates Candidates have been announced for this year’s local elections in May. A total of 128 candidates will be standing for election for the 28 seats in Sheffield – a third of the city’s seats - on Thursday 5 May. All the current ward members are standing for re-election this time. There are also elections due in the three local parish councils – Bradfield, Ecclesfield and Stocksbridge, although all the Bradfield wards and the Stocks-
bridge Town Council South ward will be uncontested this year. The Government has also decided that a referendum on the voting system to the UK Parliament should be held on the same day. The political split across the Council is currently 41 seats held by the Liberal democrats, 40 by Labour, two by the Green Party and one Independent. There will be 28 seats up for election, one third of the council. The last election left the council with no overall control. Since the
previous election, one Liberal Democrat councillor had defected to Labour leaving the Liberal Democrats with 41 councillors. Good luck to all candidates of the Asian community. Ajaz Ahmed – Labour; IIbrar Hussain – Labour; Javid Khan Liberal Democrats; Mohammed Akbar – Labour; Iltaf Hussain - Liberal Democrats; Tasadique Mohammed – Liberal Democrats; Qurban Hussain – Labour.
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