THATTA, March 1: Hundreds of growers with the activists of political parties and social welfare organization staged a protest rally against the acute shortage of irrigation water in Mirpur Bathoro on Thursday.

They accused Sindh irrigation minister of stealing water and diverting water stream to his land.

Chanting slogans and holding placards, sickles and spades, the participants of the rally marched through the main thoroughfares of the town and staged a demonstration at the local bus stand suspending vehicular traffic for one and half hour.

Speaking on the occasion, Ghulam Rasool Zangejo, Saleh Shorai and others alleged that the Sindh minister for irrigation, by abusing his authority, was usurping their water share by diverting the water stream to his land and depriving the growers of water.

They claimed that the water crises were artificial and man- made which was evident from the fact that Punjab had exceeded the target of Kharif crops but Sindh had considerably declined in the agricultural produce.

Meanwhile in a simple but graceful ceremony the Nazim of Darya Khan Soho union council, Ghulam Mustafa Soho, distributed 100 hand pumps amongst the local villagers on Thursday to overcome the ever rising water crises particularly the scarcity of potable water in the area.

BODIES: Four unidentified mutilated bodies including those of two infants and a woman lying unattended at the Qadir Dino Shah Regulator for the last three days were let off floating in water by irrigation authorities as they pulled up iron gates of the regulator near here on Friday.