HYDERABAD, May 11: The Sindh Water Committee has reiterated its demand that work on the greater Thal canal should be stopped forthwith and plans to construct dams on the River Indus and its tributaries be shelved.

Speaking at a news conference at the press club here on Tuesday, SWC president Rasool Bux Palijo and members, including Sindh Abadgar Board president Abdul Majeed Nizamani, Abrar Qazi, Nazeer Memon and Dr Nazeer Shaikh, further demanded that Sindh should be paid Rs200 billion as compensation for losses to its agriculture economy during four years (1999-2002).

Mr Palijo alleged that through the Jalendar agreement between Pakistani and Indian Punjab, water of the Indus River system was misappropriated by the two Punjabs. He said that water of three common rivers was sold to India, thereby paving the way for Pakistani Punjab to steal water of the Indus.

The AT chief said that billions of rupees were obtained as loan for construction of water works in the country but he regretted that the water works were constructed only in Punjab.

He claimed that the Tarbela Dam and Chashma-Jehlum and Taunsa-Punjnad link canals were constructed on the Indus by force. He blamed the federal government and Punjab for breaking all water agreements, such as the 1945 Sindh-Punjab agreement and the agreement regarding uses of the Tarbela Dam and the link canals.

Even the 1991 water accord was violated, he further said. Mr Palijo said that water disputes were to be decided by competent commissions but this was never done. He recalled that in March 2002 the water committee had raised voice against construction of what he called illegal and unconstitutional Thal canal and had made it clear that water was not available even to meet minimum needs of Sindh but to no avail.

He said that the Sindh irrigation department had also noted that there would be a shortage of 18 million acre feet water if the Thal canal and other dams were constructed.

The water committee president said that construction of the Thal canal would lead to differences between Sindh and Punjab. He announced that the water committee would hold a public meeting on the water issue in Badin on June 6.

Mr Palijo also criticized technical and parliamentary committees on the water issue. Answering a question about the Left Bank Outfall Drain, Sindh Abadgar Board president Nizamani said that 56 breaches had occurred in the drain last year out of which 36 breaches had not been plugged as yet.

He feared that this would cause widespread devastation in the Badin district during rains. He said that the design of the LBOD was faulty as it was against the natural flow of drainage water.