LAHORE, Dec 17: The Punjab Water Council has urged President Pervez Musharraf to remove disparity in provincial representation in the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) and ensure fair distribution of Rabi water to provinces.

At a meeting here on Monday with Omar Sarfraz Cheema in the chair to discuss the water supply position, the council said Punjab contributed 60 per cent to the national agriculture production, but it was being given only 50 per cent river water share and 20 per cent representation in IRSA.

He said Sindh contributed less than 15 per cent to the national agriculture production, but it got 50 per cent river water share with 40 per cent representation in Irsa. Balochistan has 20 per cent representation in IRSA.

The council said Punjab’s river water share needed to be increased to boost wheat production. He said Pakistan imported wheat worth

Rs30 billion this year, but still it was in short supply of the commodity.

He said the country was experiencing wheat shortage, but 16 million acre feet river water was flowing into the sea unused because of Irsa’s ‘flawed’ distribution policy.