Sindh compensates 1,600 affectees
Approximately 97% of the 1,617 encroachers of Akram Wah received compensation ranging from Rs200,000 to over Rs4 million, depending on their respective losses of structures. PHOTO: REUTERS
For the first time in the history of Sindh, 97% of the over 1,600 encroachers of Akram Wah (a water channel) were compensated with Rs550 million by the Sindh government. This initiative, guided by the World Bank (WB), aims to rehabilitate the decades-old, dilapidated water channel with $120 million in funding approved by the WB. The rehabilitation ensures proper water supply for agricultural, industrial, and domestic purposes in the districts of Hyderabad, Tando Mohammad Khan, and Badin.
Approximately 97% of the 1,617 encroachers of Akram Wah received compensation ranging from Rs200,000 to over Rs4 million, depending on their respective losses of structures. The funds were disbursed through their bank accounts, monitored by the non-governmental organisation (NGO) Rural Development Foundation (RDF). Additionally, the Sindh Rural Support Organisation (SRSO), contracted by the Sindh Irrigation and Drainage Authority (SIDA), is providing vocational training to around 2,000 Project Affected Persons (PAPs) in various skills, including mobile phone repairs, driving, solar panel installation, and a cloth-stitching-cum-beautician course for women.
The SIDA prepared a Social Resettlement and Management Plan (SRMP) for Akram Wah, incorporating all suggestions with a total budget of Rs555.126 million. The Sindh government approved Rs550 million in the Annual Development Programme (ADP) scheme, following WB guidelines to rehabilitate the water channel and resettle PAPs permanently with a decent living.
The SIDA also prepared the Sindh Water and Agriculture Transformation (SWAT) project, approved by the Sindh government with financial assistance from the WB. During project preparation in early 2021, the anti-Encroachment Drive (AED) was carried out along the entire Right of Way (ROW) embankment of Akram Wah, following orders from the Supreme Court of Pakistan and the Sindh High Court. This operation targeted the removal of encroachments on public lands in Sindh, covering three districts: Hyderabad, Tando Mohammad Khan, and Badin. The AED took place in April 2021 along the first 100 km (out of 116 km) of Akram Wah’s 315ft-wide ROW. The population along this alignment is predominantly rural (80%), with the remaining 20% being urban or semi-urban.
The affected and/or demolished structures were a mix of residential and commercial buildings, including pakka (concrete cement), semi-pakka, and katcha (thatched wall/roofs) types. The WB raised concerns about the AED displacement during the SWAT project preparation and asked SIDA to address pre-project legacies through corrective measures and mitigation actions.
Discussions between SIDA, the WB, affected groups, and others led to the formulation of the SRMP to ensure compliance with the WB’s Operating Procedure (OP) 4.12 and related safeguards and standards.
SIDA spokesperson Hizbullah Mangrio stated that the SWAT project aims to ensure water supply to the tail-enders of Sindh through the rehabilitation of Akram Wah, improve agricultural yields, remove encroachments permanently, and establish agreements with PAPs not to resettle on the water channel’s ROW.
The SRMP for the Akram Wah subproject is a comprehensive document addressing legacy and land-take impact-related safeguard issues, ensuring public lands are freed from informal settlers/encroachers. It outlines how SIDA, the project Executing Agency (EA), plans to mitigate adverse impacts on the PAPs, improve their living standards, and manage any future land acquisition and displacement associated with this project.
The Corrective Action Plan (CAP) includes cash compensation for lost structures (residential and commercial), on-site resettlement, displacement and transport allowances, loss of income compensation, vulnerability allowance, and additional grants for housing upgrades from katcha huts to kutcha or semi-pakka houses. Technical support and supervision for housing upgrades are also provided.
The Livelihood Training Programme (LTP) covers all households in Akram Wah, especially those likely to lose a significant source of their income (losing 10% or more), those physically displaced from housing due to AED operations, and vulnerable households facing more difficulty coping with displacement. A three-pronged strategy—vocational/technical training, farm-based training, and employment in project civil works—has been adopted.