HYDERABAD, April 22: The Awami Tehrik chief Rasool Bux Palijo on Tuesday criticised the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) for allowing release of 20,000 cusec of additional water to Punjab at a time when Sindh was thirsting for even drinking water.

In a statement faxed to Dawn, Mr Palijo said that the Irsa’s act was tantamount to pushing 40 million people of Sindh against the wall. Drinking water was not available even to Sukkur, which was on the River Indus, due to robbery of the river’s waters.

He said that the acute shortage of water had pushed Sindh to the verge of economic collapse and led to a sharp decline in the production of main crops like sugarcane, cotton and wheat.

He alleged that on the one hand 16,000 cusec of Sindh’s share was being released into Chashma-Jehlum link canal while on the other Irsa had allowed release of 20,000 cusec of additional water to Punjab.

Mr Palijo said that the very survival of Sindhis depended on Indus water and demanded that Sindh must get water under all circumstances by the last week of April for its Kharif crops, Chashma-Jehlum link canal should be closed and the work on Thal Canal should be stopped. Wapda should be dissolved and divided among the four provinces, he urged.