HYDERABAD, Dec 3: The joint secretary of Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz (JSQM), Serai Qurban Khuhawar, and the spokesman of the party, Dr Zulfiqar Panhwar, have condemned the appointment of non-locals in gas exploration by the OGDC in the province.

In a statement here on Monday, they alleged that only non-locals were being given appointment letters at the camp set up by the corporation in Chukhi at the cost of indigenous population.

They said that the standing crops were being destroyed during the exploration and demanded that the growers should be paid adequate compensation for damages to their crops and the local people should be provided employment.

The JSQM leaders warned that if these demands were not accepted, the party will launch a protest movement against the Oil and Gas Development Corporation.

They alleged that the workers employed on daily wage basis were being paid only Rs82 per day instead of Rs250 per day and added that the growers were being paid only Rs50 per exploration site instead of the fixed rate of Rs10,000.

They said that the party will not tolerate these gross injustices.

SPSF: The activists of Sindh Peoples Students Federation, Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences Jamshoro unit, on Monday boycotted classes and took out a protest rally at the campus against the continued detention of PPP leaders Asif Ali Zardari, Jehangir Badar, Naveed Qamar, and Yousuf Raza Gilani.

Speaking at the rally the general secretary of the SPSF, Aajiz Dhamra, Fayyaz Rajpar, Muneer Memon and others regretted that the leaders of Pakistan People’s Party were being victimized while the leaders of other parties had been released by the government.

They said that this was despite the fact that the government had not been able to produce any evidence against the PPP leaders.

They warned that if the PPP leaders were not released and false cases against the party chairperson Benazir Bhutto were not withdrawn, the SPSF will enlarge the scope of its protest and also hold protest demonstration on Eid day.