SANGHAR, Dec 12: The villagers whose homes and crops were flooded after the Mithrao canal developed a breach a week ago blamed poor work by the contractor for the breach and demanded compensation for their losses in a demonstration in front of the local press club on Tuesday.

Moula Bux Mangrio, Ramzan Rajar, Dur Mohammad Mari, Nawaz, Ali Shar Domki and many others affected villagers accused the contractor who had reinforced the canal’s embankments a few days before the breach of substandard work.

A week had passed since the breach flooded their villages and crops standing on hundreds of acres and they had been braving cold under open sky near the canal’s banks but no public representative or government functionary had showed up to help them, they complained.

They charged that the irrigation officials had reached the breached site after 14 hours and accused the contractor of substandard work. He (contractor), a friend of chief minister, was awarded Rs500 million contract to reinforce the canal’s embankments. He excavated earth so close to the banks that it weakened the embankments and caused seepage the moment water was released into the canal, which ultimately led to the breach, they said.

They said that the irrigation officials were trying to protect the contractor by blaming sabotage for the breach and demanded that the department carry out a survey of damages and pay them compensation.

BAN ON NGOs sought: The district council in a meeting on Tuesday demanded ban on all non-governmental organisations (NGOs), which it blamed for minting money in the name of helping the poor.