HYDERABAD: Pakistan Peoples Party Sindh president Nisar Ahmed Khuhro has accused federal government of stealing Sindh’s share in water and said the federal budget does not make any mention of the province’s development schemes nor does it refer to National Finance Commission award.

He said at a rally at Hyder Chowk taken out by PPP activists against water shortage in Sindh on Sunday that it was the party’s 24th protest over water issue but their cries appeared to have fallen on deaf ears.

He said that flows from Tarbela dam were released at a wrong time and it was claimed the dam lacked storage. Sindh needed water for its agriculture sector as millions of acres of land was getting barren without water, he said.

He admitted that Sindh had started receiving better water flows now but the province still remained deprived of other rights. Earlier, illegal Chashma-Jehlum link canal was opened which led to water shortage in Sindh, and while federal government itself committed water theft it accused Sindh of pilferage, he said.

Khuhro says federal budget has no mention of NFC, province’s uplift schemes

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government was committing economic murder of people of Sindh, which in turn would cause economic chaos in the country. This government had surpassed all limits in committing excesses against Sindh, he said.

He said that PPP government had got NFC passed in 2010 with enhanced share for all provinces but later a sham census was conducted to cut down Sindh’s share in NFC. Nawaz Sharif government avoided announcing NFC award in 2015 while the present government consisted of deaf and dumb people who ignored Sindh’s issues, Khuhro said.

He said that Sindh demanded its share in water and NFC. The federal government was corrupt as it had stolen Benazir income support programme and renamed it as Ehsaas programme, he said.

He said that Imran Khan’s claims of jobs and houses had become distant dreams. The federal government had excluded development schemes of Sindh from the budget, he said.

He said that Sindh always raised slogans of “Pakistan khappay” and accused ruling PTI of trying to occupy Sindh’s assets. Imran Khan had shown his bias against this province, which contributed 70pc revenue to the country kitty, he said.

PPP minority wing Sindh president Dr Lalchand said the federal government was committing atrocities against Sindh and forcing people to take to streets but people would snatch their rights from the rulers.

He said that Sindh’s water share was being stolen and Punjab was taking advantage of it. PPP was a democratic party, which always stood for a strong federation but Imran Khan had tried to weaken the federation.

PPP district president Saghir Qureshi, general secretary Ali Mohammad Sahito, Fayyaz Shah and others also spoke at the gathering.

Published in Dawn, June 14th, 2021