KARACHI, Aug 26: Opposition leader in the Sindh Assembly Nisar Ahmed Khuhro, finding little to worry about A. N. G. Abbasi’s report on construction of dams, has said that the report is close to Sindh’s stance on the issue.
Mr Abbasi, Chairman of Technical Committee on Water, submitted his report to Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz on Thursday. It reportedly emphasized on the construction of water reservoirs.
“The report does not recommend construction of Kalabagh Dam… it only suggests development of water reservoirs, which can be Bhasha Dam, Skardu Dam or any other dam,” Mr Khuhro told journalists on Friday.
“Sindh opposes development of the reservoirs downstream Tarbela Dam. Any dam upstream Tarbela is acceptable to Sindhis,” he clarified, saying that this was Sindh’s longstanding position.
Mr Khuhro said that Mr Abbasi’s report supported developing of ‘carry-over’ water reservoirs which would not store water beyond a certain limit so that Sindh’s water requirements could be met. However, he claimed, Punjab might not give its consent to the development of such carry-over reservoirs.
He said that the 1991 accord on water distribution was incomplete as the amount of water to be released downstream Kotri Barrage was yet to be defined.
PML-N Sindh President Mamnoon Hussain, commenting on the committee’s report, said that the committee should have been more specific in its recommendations.
“If country needs any dam, it must be named in such reports, because committees are constituted to make things clear,” he told PPI on Friday.
Mr Hussain said his party would oppose construction of any dam unless it was in the best interest of the nation and had consensus of all parties.
He reiterated his party’s stand that all provinces, Sindh in particular, should be given their due rights.—PPI
