HYDERABAD, May 20: Punjab is taking away 33,000 cusecs of water daily but Sindh is being told that it had no right over the water stored in the Mangla Dam.

This was said by the president of the Sindh Water Committee (SWC) and chief of the Awami Tehrik, Rasool Bux Palijo, while speaking at a big protest rally organized here on Sunday by the SWC against the construction of the greater Thal canal and “artificial” shortage of water in Sindh.

Palijo deplored the government apathy regarding the water crisis and other problems of Sindh.

He claimed that the Mangla Dam was the property of Sindh but the bureaucrats of the province knew nothing about this.

He alleged that the rulers of Punjab had misappropriated billions of rupees taken on loan in the name of Sindh and they had also sold out three rivers to India.

The SWC chief warned the Sindhi politicians, whom he branded “slaves of the establishment”, that the people of Sindh had awakened and they could no longer be hoodwinked.

Referring to the huge gathering, including women and children, he said the decision had been taken that the Sindhi nation was united for offering sacrifices to secure Sindh’s water rights.

He administered an oath to the participants to save the River Indus from drying up in Sindh.

He said he was not against the Urdu speaking people or the people speaking other languages but only wanted legal rights for Sindh.

Speaking on the occasion, Sindh Abadgar Board chairman Abdul Majeed Nizamani said the water issue was not a political one but it was an economic issue on which the Sindhis were untied.

He said if the construction of the controversial greater Thal canal was not stopped, Sindh would boycott the official water conference scheduled for May 29 and 30.

He said the survival of the country depended on agriculture but since 1955 no development had taken place in this sector.

Former MNA Syed Qurban Ali Shah said the people of Sindh would continue their struggle against the Thal canal project.

Sindh National Party chairman Dr Dodo Mehri said the rulers had broken all records of oppression and they had violated water agreements.