Declare Sindh drought-hit: SCA

Agri-body rejects IRSA readings from barrages, demands telemetry system

HYDERABAD:

The Sindh Chamber of Agriculture, a group lobbying for the province's farmers, has demanded that Sindh should be declared drought-hit because around 60% existing water shortage had turned fertile agricultural lands barren besides creating drinking water issues.

A meeting of the SCA, chaired by its President Syed Miran Muhammad Shah in Hyderabad on Sunday, also demanded discharge of 125,000 cusecs water for Sindh instead of 67,000 cusecs, citing colossal losses to crops which have been caused by the existing water scarcity.

The farmers rejected the water readings of the barrages which are being provided by the Indus River System Authority as faulty and called for installation of the telemeter system.

The asked asked the government to conduct an investigation over the theft of tens of thousands of water from Sindh's share in Punjab. On Saturday the Sindh government pointed out that 67,000 cusecs were released from Taunsa for Guddu barrage but the latter only received 37,000 cusecs.

The growers deplored that Water and Power Development Authority utilized water from Sindh's share which was stored in Tarbela dam to generate electricity, resulting in the present acute shortage.

They asked for storing 5 million acre feet water in Tarbela next year before the onset of summer season for Sindh so that the prevailing situation can be averted.