HYDERABAD: The Qaumi Awami Tehreek (QAT) on Tuesday started a six-day march against new canals from Bhitshah under the leadership of its president, Ayaz Latif Palijo.

Speaking to the media, Palijo said the canal issue concerned the entire country and everyone should raise his voice against it.

Terming it a question of the progress and existence of the country, he stated that the people of Sindh only wanted development, education and peace, therefore, no new experiment should be resorted to.

He stated that the future and survival of Sindh were linked with the Indus River and if Cholistan and other canals were built, the province would lose its water share.

He observed that the Constitution, judiciary and Indus River connected people.

Palijo added that the entire country, including Sindh, was facing the crisis of supremacy of the Constitution and governance; the whole of Sindh was drying up and nobody cared.

Describing the proposed construction of Cholistan and other canals as an adventure, he alleged that the new waterways would spell disaster in political, economic and social terms.

He advised the rulers not to play with the integrity of the country by blocking the Indus River.

In Badin, the Sindh Taraqqi-pasand Party (STP) and Sindh Progressive Party (SPP) jointly held a protest rally and observed a sit in on the main Thar Coal road on Tuesday.

The protest was led by central leaders of the two parties, including Dr Hameed Memon, Dr Ahmed Noonari and Shahnawaz Siyal.

The participants raised slogans against the federal government and its ‘anti-Sindh’ policies.

Published in Dawn, April 16th, 2025