ISLAMABAD: The allies in the National Assembly, PPP and PML-N, disagreed on Tuesday over a corporate farming plan to irrigate five million acres of “barren” land as the house discussed the issue for the first time since it was conceived last year.

A number of bills were also introduced in the assembly, including the one seeking to strip the superior court judges of powers to initiate contempt cases and another to allocate seats for overseas Pakistanis in federal and provincial legislatures.

Speaker Ayaz Sadiq allowed members to express their views on the issue as comprehensive details of the ‘Green Pakistan Initiative’ were shared in the National Assembly for the first time.

The initiative aims to irrigate 4.8m acres of “barren land” in all the four provinces, and Gilgit-Baltistan and will be executed through an army-owned company.

PPP questions corporate farming plan amid water shortage; Musadik says land in Sindh, Punjab already transferred; bill moved to clip SC’s suo motu power

As PML-N leader Dr Musadik Malik defended the proposal, central PPP leaders, including Syed Naveed Qamar and Khursheed Shah, raised a number of concerns.

In his calling attention notice, Mr Qamar strongly opposed the proposal on the grounds that the country was “among the top ten most water-stressed countries”.

He questioned where the additional water required to irrigate millions of acres of land, as outlined in the plan, would come from.

Mr Qamar recalled that Kala­bagh Dam could not be built due to fears of water diversion raised by the lower riparian provinces.

“You are talking about added water usage at the cost of old users.” he said and stressed that this corporate farming “by the rich would displace poor peasants”.

Mr Shah, another PPP leader, asked how additional water would be sourced for this project. He warned that the government was “taking a big risk”.

“It was the caretaker government, not an elected one, which signed the corporate farming agreement,” he pointed out.

PPP MNA Ghulam Ali Talpur also asked where the additional water would be arranged from in the year when there is no flood.

He feared the government was creating “new landlords” in the name of corporate farming and suggested the land should instead be given to locals for cultivation.

Minister’s reply

While replying to these concerns, Mr Malik, the minister for Water Resources, said that 4.8m acres of land had already been identified in the four provinces and GB for the purpose.

He revealed that 0.81m acres of land was acquired in Sindh and Punjab when the caretaker government was in power.

The two provinces have already signed contracts, while talks were underway with Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and GB governments.

He confirmed that the land in Sindh was transferred during the days of the caretaker government.

Since an elected government is now in power, it has the right to reverse the decision, the minister said, but promptly added that this can only be done “under the constitutional mechanism”.

The matter would have to be taken to the Council of Common Interests (CCI) for a decision, he added.

Mr Malik informed the house that the ‘Green Pakistan Initiative’ is a plan to bring barren land under cultivation and enhance the per-acre yield through modern techniques, including optimal water usage.

This initiative would be a joint venture between the provincial governments and domestic and foreign investors, who will get a share of 40 per cent of the profit.

According to the minister, 20pc of the profit will be spent on research and development to enhance agricultural productivity.

He said a company named Green Corporate Initiative has been registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan, which will supervise the initiative.

On the question of water availability, Mr Malik said water will be utilised from the already allocated share of the respective province.

He added that the Cholistan Canal scheme will be the first venture to be started under the initiative.

This will be funded completely by the Punjab government project, said the minister.

A PC-1 of Rs211 billion has been made for the 296-kilometre-long canal to bring 450,000 acres of land under irrigation.

It would consist of a 176km long canal from Sulemanki to Fort Abbas and a 120km Marur Canal.

The Cholistan Canal would get water for four months from the share of Punjab province, while for two months, it would be fed through flood water, Mr Malik said.

After the 18th constitutional amendment, the federal government could not tell any province how to use its share of water.

Following the discussion, the minister urged the speaker to set up a committee, to be headed by either Mr Qamar or Mr Shah, to thoroughly discuss the issue.

Bills introduced

During the session, JUI-F MNA Noor Alam Khan moved a bill to repeal the Contempt of Court Ordinance.

The move would essentially mean that the superior court judges would no longer have the power to initiate contempt cases.

The bill was opposed by PTI chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, who said there was a constitutional provision as well dealing with the contempt powers of judges.

Later, the bill was referred to the relevant standing committee.

Another bill, seeking to increase the number of Supreme Court judges, was deferred after opposition from the PTI chairman.

Mr Gohar said judges draw salaries from federal consolidated funds, and a money bill cannot be moved as a private member bill.

Another bill introduced in the house sought changes to the Supreme Court’s suo motu powers. The bill demanded that at least nine judges should take the decision to exercise the power.

A bill to bar dual nationality holders from becoming judges and civil servants was also introduced.

Another bill sought the allocation of reserved seats for overseas Pakistanis in both houses of parliament and provincial assemblies.

Published in Dawn, September 4th, 2024