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MIRPURKHAS, Aug 19: Members of the Mirpurkhas District Council took out a procession on Tuesday to protest against non-supply of water to tail-end areas of Mithrao and Jamrao canals.
Led by Naib Nazim Nawab Younus Talpur, the procession started from Gulistan-i-Baldia and after marching through the Hyderabad- Mirpurkhas Road terminated at the Nara Canal Area Water Board director’s office.
The protesters raised slogans against the director and engineers of the irrigation department and demanded adequate supply of water to tail-end growers.
No official was present at the office.
The district council members said growers of the canals would held a protest demonstration and stage a sit-in on the Hyderabad- Mirpurkhas Road if water was not supplied to tail-end areas.
Talking to journalists, the Naib Nazim said water was only being provided at the head of the Nara Canal. He said the people living at the tail-end of the canal were deprived even of drinking water.
He said irrigation officials were not taking notice of public grievances and the district was facing drought-like situation due to mismanagement of the system.
He said the office of the Nara Canal AWB director would be sieged and the main road would be blocked if supply of water to growers was not ensured.
STRIKE: On the call of the Shehri Action Committee, a strike was observed in Khai to protest against shortage of drinking water in the town.
Youths lit bonfires and blocked various roads.
Talking to journalists, office-bearers of different NGOs, Dr Parveen Rajput, Akbar Mari and Haji Dost Mari, said water was not supplied to their distributary for the last two months. They said water reservoirs were lying empty.
They demanded that the irrigation department should provide sufficient water to the area.
COUNCILLORS: Members of union council-2 and 4, who were on hunger strike, called off their protest on Tuesday following the transfer of civil surgeon Dr Faqeer Muhammad Leghari of the Mirpurkhas Civil Hospital.
The councillors were protesting against poor sanitary conditions, mismanagement, corruption of administrative officers and misbehaviour with patients in the hospital.
Talking to journalists at the hunger strike camp outside the hospital, District Nazim Pir Shafqat Hussain Shah Jilani and the EDO, health, Dr Fazal Ellahi Yousfani, said a summary for transfer of the doctor was sent to the secretary for health after receiving complaints against him.
