KARACHI, Jan 1: The government’s insistence on building controversial water reservoirs has been slammed by a cross section of society and political parties. Naib Amir of Jamaat-i-Islami MNA Asadullah Bhutto, while talking to a delegation of party activists, said that Gen Pervez Musharraf’s initiative was detrimental to the interests of Pakistan and its unity. He accused the general of vitiating the atmosphere of provincial harmony while at the same time making peace overtures to India.
He said that Gen Musharraf had no right to decide on the Kalabagh dam or any other issue concerning the nation. He asked Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz to take steps for building bridges of understanding between the provinces.
He presented a five-point agenda, and demanded that all water-related matters of the Indus Basin System be taken away from Wapda, and the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) be made completely independent and should be given constitutional protection, along with the 1991 Water Accord.
He also suggested that Irsa members be nominated with the consent of provincial chief ministers and the respective opposition leaders. The authority to remove any Irsa member should be with a judicial council and not the government, he added.
The JI leader proposed that no serving or retired military officer should be eligible for becoming a member of Irsa, which should be made answerable to the parliament, and not to the government. He further proposed that the implementation of 1994 ministerial meeting’s decisions should be stopped forthwith.
Asadullah Bhutto said that Wapda should be assigned the job of only registration and transmission, whereas distribution should be left up to the provinces. He called for effective measures for ensuring a functioning telemetry system to tabulate the flow of water. There should be a ‘national water council’ having 12 members — the prime minister, chief ministers, senate chairman, and leaders of the opposition in the senate, national and provincial assemblies — to oversee all matters relating to water distribution.
ANTI-DAM RALLY: The Jeay Sindh Mahaz (JSM) staged a protest rally outside the Karachi Press Club on Sunday, rejecting the Kalabagh dam as ‘anti-Sindh project’ and castigated Pir Pagara, Mohammad Mian Soomro and Syed Qamaruz Zaman Shah for supporting the same.
Addressing the rally, JSM leaders said the purpose of building the mega dam was to usurp Sindh’s share of water on which Sindh had exclusive rights. They slammed the regime for insisting on the construction of the KBD, which had been rejected by three provincial assemblies. They vowed to resist any attempt to build this dam.
“Those who support the Kalabagh dam are traitors… the people of Sindh will never forgive them,” they declared.
ANP’S STAND: Joint Secretary of the Awami National Party, Amin Khatak, in a statement, said that the Kalabagh dam was a matter of life and death for Sindhis and Pukhtoons. The regime’s policy of building mega dams was aimed at eliminating them from the face of the world, he remarked.
“Followers of Bacha Khan will never allow any conspiracy against the land of Khushhal Khan Khatak, Rahman Baba and Kaka Sahib, and would not hesitate to give any sacrifice for the glory and prosperity of this country.”
The ANP leader accused the rulers of being involved in a conspiracy against the nation and federation for which they had deliberately raised the dam issue.
In a similar statement, ANP Sindh chief Shahi Syed, rejecting the dam project, deplored the government for rendering more people jobless and subjecting them to frequent price spiral and thus forcing them to commit suicide.
Meanwhile, the Labour Education Forum has condemned the baton-charge on the women participants of an anti-Kalabagh rally in Lahore.
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