LARKANA, July 23: The district nazim has urged the Sindh culture and tourism department for the construction of more reading halls in the Sir Shahnawaz Bhutto Memorial Library.

In a letter sent to the secretary of the culture department on July 22, Nazim Khurshid Junejo said that due to an enormous increase in the number of readers, the exiting hall was unable to accommodate them.

He said that most of the time the readers including those preparing for competitive examinations waited outside the hall for a chair to be vacated. He requested the culture department to prepare a plan for expansion of the library, adding that he had allocated Rs100,000 for the purchase of chairs, tables and ceiling fans for it.

The library lacked even book shelves and study desks, the nazim said and urged the authorities to urgently sanction a grant to meet the demands. The assistant director of the library has already requested the culture and tourism department in this regard and approached the district government for assistance.

OPEN KUTCHEHRY: Participants of a public outreach programme of the adviser to the Sindh chief minister on public affairs in Nasirabad on Friday deplored the water shortage, particularly at the tail-end of water channels, frequent power breakdowns, unemployment and lack of medical facilities in the area.

They accused influential landlords of receiving more water than their share at the cost of ruining the land of small-scale farmers. Adviser Manzoor Hassan asked the irrigation officials to curb water theft and ensure maximum supply to the tail-enders.

The field staff of the irrigation department must ensure judicious distribution of water and the engineers should supervise the process, he said. He said that he would submit his findings to the chief minister with the recommendations to take immediate steps for resolving the problems.

He said that in order to address the issue of unemployment, the establishment of industries was necessary and added that the government was trying to provide peaceful atmosphere to foreign investors in the province so that more industries could be established there.

IG: The IG, Sindh, Syed Kamal Shah, has asked the regional police officer of Sukkur to adopt preventive measures to maintain law and order situation in Larkana district.

He issued the directive in response to a letter by MPA Ayaz Soomro in which he had complained about deteriorating law and order situation in the district with a particular reference to the kidnapping of Santosh Kumar, rice trader and the district president of the Hindu Panchayat. The IG asked RPO Rahoo Khan Brohi for immediate recovery of Mr Kumar.