HYDERABAD: Far­mers of Sindh’s southern region have vowed to opp­ose the six canals proposed to be built on the Indus River in Punjab’s Cholistan area, saying the project would render their lands “completely barren”.

They staged a rally under the aegis of Anti-Canals Action Committee, a conglomerate of three gro­wers’ bodies — Sindh Abadgar Board (SAB), Sindh Chamber of Agricu­l­ture (SCA) and Sindh Abadgar Ittehad (SAI). Sindh United Party’s Sindh United Abadgar Forum is also part of the group.

The protesters said that new canals, approved by the Central Development Working Party, undermi­ned the survival of millions of people living in Sindh.

SAB president Mah­mood Nawaz Shah said growers were protesting “for the sake of this country and Sindh”.

He questioned the wisdom behind the canals to irrigate lands in the Chol­is­­tan desert. “You will build canals to irrigate the des­ert and convert fertile lands into desert. What is the logic behind it?” he asked. Mr Shah questioned the use of surplus water for these canals and said Sindh’s water issues date back to 150 years old and not 1935. He claimed British colonists had conceded that more lands used to be cultivated in Sindh than in Punjab.

He said growers would not back “illegal initiatives” and questioned the approval granted by those “who take oath on the holy book to remain loyal to the country”.

SCA’s Miran Mohammad Shah called upon Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, whose PPP is an ally of the federal government, to lead the farmers’ protest like his mother Benazir Bhutto did.

He was alluding to the protest against Kalabagh Dam led by Ms Bhutto in August 1998 in Ubauro, Ghotki.

‘No compromise on water’

Mr Shah said this was the issue for the entire country, not only Sindh or Punjab.

He urged the urban population, especially the residents of Karachi, to “realise the gravity of the situation” because K-IV, being built to supply water to the city from the Kotri barrage, wouldn’t serve the purpose if the barrage did not receive water.

Mr Miran said he was at a loss to understand whether policymakers lack­­ed wisdom or were indifferent to the fact that water flow downstream of Kotri Barrage remained zero in normal conditions.

If these canals were built, everything would turn barren in Sindh, he added.

SAI president Zubair Talpur condemned the project and asked about the fate of existing lands in Sindh if new lands were to be cultivated in a desert.

He said Sindh was already complaining that it was not getting its share of water in line with the Water Accord of 1991.

SCA vice president Nabi Bux Sathio shared statistics from the Indus River System Authority, which showed Sindh had borne more water shortage (40pc) than Punjab (15pc) between 1999-2023.

He said the federal government should spend Rs240 billion on the Diamer-Bhasha dam instead of the Cholistan canal, which would “destroy 12m acres of agricultural lands in Sindh for the sake of irrigating 1.2m acres of Cholistan desert”.

Syed Zain Shah, who is convener of Sindhu Darya Bachayao Committee, said Sindh would witness migration in 10 years when water is diverted for these six canals from the Indus River.

He claimed that the new canals would “destroy” Sindh and, therefore, the federation “must take a wise decision and shelve this project”.

Bashir Shah of the Sindh Untied Abadgar Forum said the province would never compromise on three issues — language, homeland and water.

He also requested the president to withdraw the decision taken in the July 8 meeting.

Others who addressed the protest included Syed Nadeem Shah, Zahid Bhurgari, Mir Zafarullah, Mohib Marri, Zulfikar Yousfani and former advocate general Sindh Yusuf Leghari. Mr Leghari urged the lawyers’ bodies to boycott courts once in a week to sensitise the judiciary about the issue.

Published in Dawn, November 24th, 2024