MITHI: Members of Thar District Bar Association announced on Friday the organising of a conference in the town on March 2 to seek peoples’ opinions about their issues in the wake of massive coal mining and said the desert dwellers badly needed guidance by the educated class hence they had decided to step forward.

The bar leaders Raisingh Sodho, Ghulam Mustafa Hingorjo, Bheroomal and others said that they would provide legal support to all Thar residents on their right to natural resources and other issues facing the region.

They told local journalists that it was high time their fraternity came forward and provided legal assistance to people, whose resources were being utilised to generate power, and helped people with regard to other issues caused by construction of mega projects in the district. They made it clear that Tharis had the first right over the huge coal reserves and other natural resources. They had decided to organise the conference as the first step to sensitise Tharis to their problems so that they could get legal support in case of infringement on their rights, they said.

Published in Dawn, February 22nd, 2020