KARACHI: Calling for a new agreement to ensure fair and equitable distribution of irrigation water among provinces, the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Monday announced a protest campaign across Sindh for the province’s due share in water. It warned that if the federal government and Punjab continued to ignore Sindh’s stance, the entire country could face a devastating impact of water shortage on its agricultural produce by the end of this year.

The protest plan was announced by PPP’s Sindh president Nisar Ahmed Khuhro after chairing a meeting of the party’s provincial executive committee. It was attended by senior leaders including Manzoor Wassan, Waqar Mehdi, Aajiz Dhamrah and Aijaz Jakhrani, besides Irrigation Minister Sohail Anwar Siyal.

The meeting decided to launch a public protest campaign under which rallies would be held in different districts to raise a voice against unfair distribution of water and put pressure on the authorities concerned to review their position on the issue.

‘Campaign will start on June 3 from Larkana, end on June 15 in Karachi’

“With no other option left open, we are going to launch the protest campaign from June 3,” said Mr Khuhro. “We have formally finalised the schedule of the protest that would start on June 3 in Larkana. The following protests will be held in Hyderabad on June 5, Mirpurkhas on June 7, Sukkur on June 9 and in Shaheed Benazirabad on June 11. The last protest will be held in Karachi on June 15,” he added.

He explained that all these protests would be held in the district headquarters.

Mr Khuhro pointed out that release of water downstream Kotri still remained unresolved. He said that rice cultivation in Sindh was to begin on May 1 but sowing hit delays due to an acute water shortage. He said that water supply to Sindh was supposed to start on May 5 every year but despite availability of water in Tarbela and Mangla Dams, the flow at Sukkur Barrage was only 48,000 cusecs. The barrage, he said, could not be opened until it received 87,000 cusecs.

Stressing a fair treatment to three smaller provinces, Mr Khuhro accused the federal authorities of showing a lack of interest in resolving issues relating to Sindh. The incumbent and previous federal governments had been doing injustice to Sindh by depriving the population of the lower riparian of their rightful share in water, he said.

“The Water Accord of 1991 was strongly opposed by the PPP at that time but now even this agreement is not being implemented,” he said, and deplored that injustices were being meted out to the people of Sindh again and again.

Mr Khuhro complained: “When Sindh’s member speaks at the Irsa [Indus River System Authority] meeting, he is attacked and humiliated. When we talk about rights of Sindh and Balochistan, the federation launches a campaign against us.”

He said the Sindh government had completed cleaning of canals and clearing of watercourses to ensure the supplies reach up to the tail-end areas. More than Rs7 billion for the purpose has been allocated in the current financial year for Badin district alone, he said, and hoped that the funds would help solve the problem through lining of channels and address the issues relating to the Left Bank Outfall Drain (LBOD).

“It was noted at the PPP executive committee’s meeting that unfortunately, Irsa is playing the role of PTI’s B team. Our water is being released illegally in the Chashma-Jhelum and Taunsa-Panjnad link canals. It’s Sindh’s water which is being stolen released from Taunsa to Guddu,” Mr Khuhro said.

Published in Dawn, June 1st, 2021