HYDERABAD, May 13: The Faran Club International Hyderabad has expressed grave concern over the release of poisonous water into River Indus and said villagers of Dadu district were suffering from stomach diseases owing to the consumption of contaminated water.

In a joint statement issued here on Wednesday, the president of the club, Major (retd) Umer Farooq Ahmed Khan, and general secretary, Aijaz Iftikhar said that this contaminated water had reached Kotri Barrage from where water was supplied to Karachi and Hyderabad.

They said that according to the analysis undertaken by the club, the ratio of chloride at Lakhra was 550 to 600ppm, where as the conductivity was between 2500 to 3000.

They said that at Kotri Barrage, the chloride ratio was 120ppm and the ratio of conductivity was 1200. They said that normally the ratio of chloride at Kotri barrage is 20 to 30ppm and of conductivity 300 to 400. They said that this situation was very alarming.

Meanwhile, PPP leader and MNA from Kotri, Nawab Abdul Ghani Talpur in a statement has said that the concerned authorities have been informed of the supply of contaminated water to the people of Kotri. He said the Superintending Engineer Kotri Barrage, Mr Rafique Memon has assured him that fresh water will be released downstream Kotri within 24 hours.

ARREST DEMANDED: The authorities concerned should order immediate arrest of bandits who had barged into the house of a journalist and a newspaper agent and taken away jewellery and cash.

This demand was made by Irfan Burfat, a reporter of a Sindhi daily, and his brother, newspaper agent Ghulam Akbar Burfat, while speaking at a news conference at the press club here on Thursday.

They said on the night of April 25, 10 bandits looted jewellry and cash from their house. They said that in the morning they traced the footprints with the help of sniffer dogs which led them to the house of Ayub Brohi and Gul Mohammad Brohi.

They said that the accused who were present at the time ran away but Gul Mohammad confessed to the crime. They said police arrested Ayub and Gul Mohammad but their arrest was not shown on the record and later they were released at the intervention of a federal minister.