HYDERABAD, Sept 2: The Hyderabad District Council on Monday recommended to the provincial and central governments to remodel and desilt canals and the channels, originating from these canals.
The council said feasibility report about the remodelling of the canals should be prepared so that the work could be started as soon as possible.
It further said monitoring of the work should be given under the supervision of the district council’s irrigation liaison committee.
The recommendation was made by the council through a report of the council’s sub-committee on irrigation which was presented in the council on Monday.
The report was prepared by Syed Khuda Dino Shah alias Javed Gul Shah, the convener of the committee.
The report said Pinyari, Phuleli and Lined canals were in poor shape and needed immediate remodelling and desilting.
The presence of heavy silt in the canals and encroachment on their banks had resulted in a breach in the Rohri Canal near Bhit Shah and the overflowing of the Phuleli Canal, leading to inundation of various localities in the city, it said.
The report said due to shortage of 5,000 cusecs in the Pinyari Canal, the entire system of Hyderabad and Thatta districts was being run on rotation basis.
It recommended the SDO concerned should be bound to consult and hold a meeting with the Nazim of union council concerned at least once in a week and that high officials should also hold meetings with the council’s irrigation committee.
The committee said at the sub-division level, blue-eyed boys of the irrigation department were posted who, according to the committee, took bribe from farmers to supply them their share of water.
Expressing anger over the recent destruction caused by overflowing of the Pinyari Canal and the Rohri Canal breach in Matiari taluka, the committee demanded of the Sindh government to pay compensation to the affected people and remodel and desilt the canals.
The session also adopted a report of the council’s committee on Hesco.
The report said nothing had been done to redress grievance of people, concerning Hesco, so far.
The committee decided to appoint a sub-committee which would hold meeting with superintending and executive engineers concerned.
Rana Mehmood Ali Khan’s resolution about rise in power tariff was also unanimously passed by the council.
The resolution condemned the inordinate increase in the power tariff and demanded its immediate withdrawal.
It said Wapda had succumbed to the demand of international institutions about the raise in its tariff.
Khan pointed out the increase in power would lead to rise in prices of other items too and added the agriculture sector would be destroyed.
Minority councillor M. Parkash expressed his gratitude over the restoration of reserved seats for minorities in the national and provincial assemblies.