PPP firm on 'no canals under any circumstances'

The Sindh government and the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Tuesday firmly declared that the province would never allow the construction of new canals on the Indus river, vowing not to give up even a single drop of its water.

Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah said that the PPP had been opposing the canal project long before the other groups now staging protests across Sindh.

"People should not worry, the PPP will not allow construction of the canals under any circumstances," Chief Minister Shah said, while talking to reporters at the Cardinal House in Karachi, where he had gone to offer condolences on the death of Pope Francis.

"The PPP has presented itself in the leadership role in opposition to the proposed new canals. The protests launched by the opposition parties and self-proclaimed nationalists began much later than the PPP protests," he said. "They began opposing these canals in September, October and November 2024, while the PPP and the Sindh government presented its position in a CCI [Council of Common Interests] meeting in June 2024 and also raised the issue in the Ecnec [ Executive Committee of the National Economic Council]."

The chief minister voiced hope that the federal government would abandon the controversial project. "Hopefully the prime minister [Shehbaz Sharif] will announce the cancellation of the canals project upon his return from Turkey," he said.

Earth day message

CM Murad on his World Earth Day message termed the earth as 'mother' and stated that its protection is the responsibility of every individual. He expressed concern over the threats to the ecological balance and stated that harmony with nature and sustainable measures are the need of the hour. The Indus Delta has been deprived of water for years and it's ecosystem is being destroyed.