HYDERABAD, July 10: A large number of farmers, receiving water from Rahuki and Husri Minors of Masu sub-division, staged a protest demonstration outside the press club here on Wednesday against the ‘artificial’ shortage of water.

Led by the Nazim of Union Council Tando Haider, Syed Miran Muhammad Shah, the protesters threatened to commit self-immolation one by one outside the superintending engineer’s office if their grievances were not redressed.

Speaking on the occasion, their leaders said that shortage of water was being created artificially for the last one year as a result of which they could not cultivate their crops and their children had been deprived of even two square meals.

The angry growers said that their orchards had been destroyed and even drinking water was not available.

They said that they had drawn the attention of the concerned irrigation officials toward the illegally fitted pipes, broken water courses and an open sale of irrigation water but all the complaints had fallen on deaf ears.

They claimed that the XEN of Hala division had himself visited the site and verified their claims but no action had been taken against the culprits.

They appealed to the president, governor and irrigation minister for help in the name of humanity.

They demanded that the tail-enders of Rahuki and Husri Minors be provided their due share of water, all the broken water courses be repaired and illegal pipes removed, the rotation programme be ended and the superintending engineer of Rohri Canal Circle be removed from his post without any delay.

They also demanded a judicial inquiry and a probe under army personnel into the ‘corrupt’ practices of the irrigation officials responsible for creating artificial shortage of water.

The growers urged the government to declare the tail-end dehs of Rahuki and Husri Minors as calamity affected area and stop the recovery of agricultural taxes. They appealed that the loans granted to the tail-enders be waived.

They threatened to observe hunger strikes and commit self-immolation outside the office of the SE if their demands were not accepted.

Later, the growers held a rally outside the office of the SE but he was not present.

A delegation of the protesters also went up to the gate of the army garrison to apprise the GOC of their grievances but they were advised to come on Thursday.