HYDERABAD: The Un­­i­ted Nations on Thurs­day launched the ‘Clean Indus’ campaign in Kotri near Jamshoro, engaging over 300 university students, and representatives from NGOs, government institutions and the farming community, focusing on water conservation and quality improvement to enhance food production in the country.

During the annual campaign, a huge amount of debris on the banks of the Indus River in Sindh and other provinces is collected and disposed of safely, highlighting the vital role of clean water for agriculture and well-being and raising public awareness about the vital role of water for survival.

The clean-up drive has been organised by the UN in Pakistan led by the Food and Agriculture Organisa­tion (FAO) to mark World Food Day, which is being observed under the theme of ‘Water is Life, Water is Food’, a statement said.

This year’s Food Day spotlights the plight of 2.4 billion people in water-stressed countries and 600 million reliant on aquatic food systems who face pollution, ecosystem degradation and climate change impacts.

Florence Rolle, FAO’s representative in Pakis­tan, in her introductory remarks, highlighted the country’s agricultural significance, with its extensive irrigated land ranking it as the world’s third-largest in this category.

The location of Jam-sh­oro was chosen strategically due to its heavy population of rural communities and excessive pollution from plastic waste.

Haji Khan Jamali, chief engineer of Kotri Barrage; Asadullah Khoso, additional deputy commissioner of Jamshoro; and Agha Fakher, director general of Food Authority Sindh, emphasised the importance of water in agriculture, food production and food security.

Published in Dawn, October 13th, 2023