DADU, Sept 1: Sindh chief minister’s inspection team on development schemes initiated on Thursday a high-level inquiry into use of substandard material in buildings and roads of education and public health engineering departments.
Chief Minister Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim had directed the team to conduct the inquiry.
The team is headed by the deputy director of the inspection team, Javed Memon, and has Nazir Mahar and Wahid Bux as members.
The team visited development schemes in Dadu, Johi, Khairpur Nathan Shah and Mehar talukas and collected evidence of schemes where substandard material had been used.
It took notice of delaying tactics and using substandard material in mega development projects including the Gorakh hill station and Mazar of Hazrat Qalandar Lal Shahbaz.
The team received documents and records of period of former taluka nazims Dadu, Johi, Khairpur Nathan Shah and Mehar.
DCO Aijaz Ahmed Mangi told Dawn that he was appointed the project director of construction work of Mazar of Hazrat Lal Shahbaz by the Sindh chief minister.
He said he had inspected ongoing construction of Mazar and stopped payment of Rs8.6 million to the contractor for delaying work.
WATER SHORTAGE: Hundreds of farmers of Pir Gunio waterway of the Dadu taluka staged a demonstration outside the press club on Thursday in protest against officials of the irrigation southern division.
Sher Khan Babar and Niaz Ahmed Panhwar led the protesters. Farmers’ leaders said sub-engineer Pir Gunio waterway, Mohammad Khan Channo, was selling water to influential farmers at the head of the waterway.
They said the officials had tampered with watercourses in the head of Pir Gunio waterway to deprive tail-end farmers of due share of water.
They said they had not cultivated cotton and paddy crops and hundreds of acres of land had dried up.
They marched on different roads and streets in the town.
They observed a token hunger strike outside the office of the executive engineer southern division.
PROTEST: A large number of Sui gas consumers staged a demonstration outside the press club on Thursday in protest against the Sui Southern Gas Company for not providing them gas connections.
