MITHI, Jan 5: Speakers at an all-parties conference held here on Wednesday said that if the government sincerely wanted prosperity of Sindh, then it should construct dams in the Karoonjhar mountain range instead of at Kalabagh. Leaders of religious, nationalist, social and federal parties participated in the conference.

Nandlal Malhi, information secretary of the Sindh Taraqi Pasand Party, said the survival of 40 million Sindhis was on the Indus river and more dams on it would deprive Sindh of its due share of water.

He said the dams would turn Sindh into a barren region.

“Three assemblies have rejected the Kalabagh dam hence there seems no sound technical ground for the rulers to construct it”, said Mr Malhi.

“We can not rely on any promise or guarantee of rulers and Punjab”, Mr Malhi said.

PPP Tharparkar president Dr Mahesh Kumar Malani said strong protest against Kalabagh dam was going on but the rulers were not paying any heed to it.

“The dam is against the survival and prosperity of Sindh” he said.

Mr Malani called upon dam protagonists to desist from it and support the genuine cause of Sindh.

JUI’s Maulana Anwar Soomro said the Kalabagh dam was politically, technically, economically and environmentally against Sindh.

He said activists of the JUI would resist construction of the dam and would not hesitate to give sacrifices in this connection.

Bheromal Kolhi said instead of Kalabagh dam, the rulers should construct Karoonjhar dam in Thar where people were facing thirst.

He said that people in the Thar were longing for a drop of sweet water.

Ashraf Samoo said the people of Sindh should jointly appeal Pir Pagaro and others not to support the Kalabagh dam but the genuine cause of Sindh.

Irshad Kumbhar, Abdul Ghani, Khatau Jani, Ghulam Hussain Khamisani, Maghno Kolhi and Devjee Bheel also spoke on the occasion.