Protests erupt over water crisis despite Indus in flood

Protests against shortage of irrigation water are surfacing every other day in many parts of Sindh even though the Indus river is flowing with close to 200,000 cusecs as it enters the province from Punjab. The farmers and political workers in Kambar-Shahdakot, Khairpur and Mirpurkhas held demonstrations on Monday, blaming the Sindh Irrigation Ministry for failing to supply water even when the river is in flood situation.

A sit-in protest, participated by thousands of people, was staged outside the office of Deputy Commissioner Kambar-Shahdadkot. "Lands are turning barren in Kambar because of engineered water scarcity," Mir Muzaffar Ali Brohi, who is associated with the Grand Democratic Alliance, alleged.

"The government is behaving like a step mother with us knowing well that the rice seed has been sown and the crops need water," deplored Mir Ghaibi Khan Mugheri, who represented the local farmers. He lamented that at a time when abundant water is flowing in the Indus, dust is flying in many distributaries in their district.

Mugheri said the closure of water for their waterways amounted to asphyxiating agricultural economy in their area. "The once green fields are fast turning arid due to unavailability of water." JUI-F's Hafiz Aziz Gul Jagirani said agriculture is the economic mainstay in their district, adding that depriving farmers of their livelihood meant economic disaster for their entire population. The protesters pointed out that the livestock animals are also dying of thirst.

Meanwhile, the protesting farmers in Khairpur district descended in a waterway and sat on its floor to show that the distributary has completely dried up. The demonstration was held in Faiz distributary in Gambat taluka. They alleged that corruption and a lack of capability of the irrigation officers are causing drought like situation in their area.

Separately, talking to the media in Mirpurkhas district, Jeay Sindh Mahaz's Chairman Riaz Ali Chandio claimed that the farmers in the command areas of Guddu and Sukkur barrages are not receiving adequate water for irrigation. He blamed the government for conspiring to compel the farmers to sell their lands by shrinking water supply so that such pieces of land could be occupied for corporate farming.