ISLAMABAD, Sept 21: The People’s Rights Movement (PRM) and one of its member organizations, Thal Bachao Tarla, have demanded that the government should make public all relevant details of the Greater Thal Canal (GTC) project for open discussion.

The PRM, in a statement, said the government should start work on the canal only after taking the local community in to confidence.

PRM activist Mushtaq Gadi and Mazhar Nawaz of Thal Bachao Tarla said people of Khushab district were facing displacement due the project.

The activists, who had recently visited Nurpur Tehsil where the GTC project’s initial construction was underway, said construction work on the canal near Shanwala village had been stopped at least twice by the local communities whose lands and homes were facing destruction on account of the project.

However, despite protests, the authorities concerned are still not prepared to give the locals alternative land. In fact, compensation for land acquired from the people was still pending, they added.

They said the rate being offered to the locals was Rs45,000 per acre against the present market rate of Rs100,000.

The army’s unwillingness to consult local people regarding the issue reflects absence of democratic processes in the country, they added.

Meanwhile, the statement said the Board of Revenue, Punjab, had also received instructions to prevent leakage of information regarding land acquisition and the colonization process that was being conceived for 1,500,000 acre command area.

It said Sindh had already made its stance clear, and it was unfortunate that all kinds of underhand tactics were being employed by the ruling party in Sindh to thwart the democratic process in the provincial assembly.

The PRM and the Thal Bachao Tarla are in contact with the Anti-Greater Thal Canal Committee in Sindh and are expecting to initiate joint protests in the near future, it added.