Major Barrages in Pakistan: Irrigation & Flood Control Infrastructure

Pakistan's Indus Basin irrigation system — the world's largest contiguous network — relies on barrages (gated weirs) to divert river water into canals. Key barrages (west to east / upstream to downstream):

1. Sukkur Barrage (1932) — Indus River, Sukkur, Sindh. 66 gates; commands 7.6M acres (Ghotki, Nara, Rohri, etc.). Lloyd Barrage (colonial name).
2. Kotri Barrage (1955) — Indus River, Jamshoro/Kotri, Sindh. 44 gates; last barrage before delta; controls saline intrusion.
3. Guddu Barrage (1962) — Indus River, Kashmore, Sindh. 65 gates; feeds Ghotki, Begari, Desert, Pat Feeder canals.
4. Taunsa Barrage (1958, rehab 2011) — Indus River, Taunsa Sharif, Punjab. 52 gates; feeds Muzaffargarh, TP Link canals.
5. Chashma Barrage (1971) — Indus River, Mianwali, Punjab. 52 gates; Chashma-Jhelum Link Canal; also hydropower (184 MW).
6. Jinnah Barrage (1946) — Indus River, Kalabagh, Punjab. 40 gates; feeds Thal Canal (major).
7. Rasul Barrage (1968) — Jhelum River, Mandi Bahauddin, Punjab. 33 gates; Rasul-Qadirabad Link Canal.
8. Marala Barrage (1968) — Chenab River, Sialkot, Punjab. 43 gates; Marala-Ravi Link Canal.
9. Qadirabad Barrage (1970) — Chenab River, Gujrat, Punjab. 43 gates; Qadirabad-Balloki Link Canal.
10. Trimmu Barrage (1939) — Chenab/Jhelum confluence, Jhang, Punjab. 49 gates.
11. Panjnad Barrage (1932) — Confluence of 5 rivers (Panjnad), Bahawalpur, Punjab. 48 gates.
12. Islam Barrage — Sutlej River, Bahawalpur (border with India).
13. Sulemanki Barrage — Sutlej River, near Pakistan-India border.

Proposed / Under Construction

• Kalabagh Barrage / Dam — Indus, Mianwali — politically contentious; not built.
• Diamer-Bhasha Dam — Indus, Gilgit-Baltistan — under construction (4,500 MW, 8.1 MAF storage); not a barrage but mega-dam.
• Mohmand Dam — Swat River, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa — under construction (800 MW).

These structures enable Pakistan's 19M ha irrigated area — 90% of agricultural output.