SANGHAR, May 29: The Chief Minister of Sindh, Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim, has said that millions of rupees were misappropriated in payment of compensation for land acquired for the Chhotiari reservoir and the pending cases requried amounts of money more than the total cost of the reservoir.

Talking to newsmen at the Chhotiari reservoir on Sunday in presence of the federal Minister for Water and Power, Liaquat Ali Jatoi, the Secretary Irrigation, Ashfaq Memon, MNAs and MPAs, he said that the name of Chhotiari had been changed had been changed to Makhi Reservoir.

The chief minister said that the barren lands were shown as gardens and orchards to get a maximum compensation amount. He said Rs340 million would be spent on pitching, earth work, tube wells and Ranto canal.

He also informed that Rs one billion was promised by Prime Minister Shaukaz Aziz for Makhi Farash Canal. All these works would be carried out by the engineering corps of the army. He said Wapda had handed over Makhi reservoir to the Sindh government on May 23 and the Sindh government had requested Wapda to prepare inventory list for smooth running of the reservoir. Talking on the occasion, the federal minister for water and power said that Mirpurkhas, Umerkot and Sanghar districts would benefit from the reservior. He said 0.7MAF water could be stored in the reservoir which would enable irrigate 290,000 acres of land and benefit more than one million people. The fish catch would also increase from the present 400 tons to 4200 tons per annum in the reservoir, he added.