BADIN: Sindh Minister for Agricult­ure Ismail Rahu has expres­sed his confidence that cane growers and sugar mills will no more be at odds over cane price or start of the crushing season.

“I don’t think there will be deadlocks [in issues between the two sides] on the two core issues this year,” he said, adding that being an agriculturist and now having the same portfolio, he was well-versed with all related issues and had been in close contact with all stakeholders.

“We [the stakeholders] will sit together and hammer out all issues to prevent such deadlocks that had been happening in the past,” he said.

Speaking to this reporter on Tuesday, Mr Rahu said the real challenge to the agriculture sector was the looming water crisis.

The position of water availability in Sindh at the moment was terrible and the situation was aggravating with each passing day due to very low rainfall this year, unfair distribution of water among provinces, climate change impacts and certain other factors, he said.

The minister expressed his optimism that all other core issues relating to the agriculture sector would be resolved through negotiations with the organisations concerned.

He said that the Sindh government was committed to giving a boost to this sector by addressing impediments to its growth.

“It’s time to take serious measures to address climate change, food insecurity and other issues threatening the fertile lands of lower riparian,” he said.

Agriculture experts, he added, should exert pressure on all stakeholders asking them to put in their sincere efforts towards ensuring an equitable distribution of resources, including water, among provinces as per their genuine requirement.

Commenting on rice crop, he said it was good omen that rice growers were getting fair rates this year, pointing out that there had been no complaints so far coming in from any rice zone in the province.

The minister claimed that he had taken no pressures from irrigation officials while trying his best to ensure fair distribution of water among growers of lower Sindh because he knew that rice had always been the chief crop in this region.

“A very serious shortage of water prevailed during the peak season of rice cultivation. I, therefore, set aside all my ministerial engagements to focus on providing water to all rice cultivation areas of lower Sindh,” he said, observing that farmers were now reaping a yield higher than they had expected. He pointed out that chances of a good yield were not anticipated due to almost no rainfall in these areas.

He, however, conceded that some areas did not receive adequate water despite his all-out efforts and the full cooperation extended to the department by the PPP leadership as well as other authorities. Resultantly, he said, growers could not cultivate rice in time.

Regarding the issue of new dams, Mr Rahu said those who were bent upon going ahead with the “controversial” water reservoirs should first visit the devastated coastal belt of Sindh. “The entire belt is facing sea intrusion and water crisis. The ecology of the coastal region is totally disturbed due to a severe drought and inadequate release of water downstream Kotri,” he noted.

Mr Rahu said he was in direct contact with all stakeholders with regard to the water flows during the Rabi season. He urged the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) to ensure release of Sindh’s due share in water so that growers could cultivate Rabi crops in a timely manner.

The minister criticised what he termed “misrule and mismanagement” on part of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government, and also advised it to stop “finding ways to create hurdles in the smooth sailing of the Sindh government”.

He said that interference by state institutions in the affairs of the provincial government would only lead to a chaotic situation. He said top PPP leaders had already faced politics of victimisation in the past so they could not be intimidated through threats from politically immature people.

Published in Dawn, November 7th, 2018