September 30, 2003	Tuesday	Sha’aban 3, 1424

Please Visit our Sponsor (Ads open in separate window).

DADU, Sept 29: Hundreds of growers of Dadu Taluka held a demonstration in Khudabad town and blocked the Indus Highway on Monday in protest against the irrigation officials for selling their share of water to influential landlords.

As a result of the protest, traffic remained suspended for three hours.

Carrying banners and placards, the protesters raised slogans against the irrigation officials. They were led by the Union Council Nazim, Yar Mohammad Kalhoro, Imam Ali Shah, president of PTA, and grower Maula Bux Kalhoro.

Speaking to the protesters, the Nazim said that water courses/modules were tampered with in the irrigation division, southern Dadu.

He said that when the growers of Phakka waterway demanded their share of water, the irrigation officials registered an FIR against 250 growers and arrested 10 of them.

He said that due to artificial shortage of irrigation water, paddy crops had been destroyed.

DEMO: A large number of employees of Hesco, Dadu, held a demonstration in front of the press club on Monday to protest against Sui Southern Gas Company officials.

They were led by the provincial vice-president of Hesco Paigham Union, Liaquat Arain, and its zonal chairman, Mohammad Usman Junejo.

Speaking to the demonstrators, Mr Liaquat said that the SSGC engineer, Dadu, Rasheed Leghari, was a defaulter for an amount of Rs18,000 for the electricity bill of his residence which had not been paid for the last three months.

As soon as the Hesco staff disconnected his power supply, he directed his staff to cut off the gas connections of all 150 employees of Hesco, including its executive engineer, and the SDOs of Dadu, Johi, Mehar and Khairpur Nathan Shah despite the fact that they had paid all their gas bills.