Karachi, Apr 20 (PTI) The Pakistan government has agreed to initiate talks with the Sindh government over the contentious canals project that has sparked widespread unrest across southern Sindh, a senior provincial minister said on Sunday.
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), which has been governing Sindh for the past three consecutive terms and is also a part of the ruling coalition at the Centre, has been at the forefront of opposition to the construction of new canals from the Indus River.
The Sindh government fears that projects like Cholistan canal will divert water from the Indus to irrigate lands in southern Punjab, exacerbating water shortages in Sindh.
On Sunday, Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Memon confirmed that the federal government has agreed to sit down and resolve the issue through dialogue.
He said that Rana Sanaullah, adviser to the Prime Minister and president of the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) Punjab chapter, has contacted him to initiate the process.
“Rana Sanaullah spoke with me over the phone, and we agreed that the canal dispute should be settled through talks,” Memon said.
In mid-February, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir jointly inaugurated the Cholistan project, intended to irrigate lands in south Punjab. The move triggered strong backlash and protests across Sindh, including a unanimous resolution passed by the Sindh Assembly in March opposing the initiative.
The past few months have seen nationwide protests from political parties and civilians against the proposed canal project.
The Punjab government has also drawn criticism for diverting increasing volumes of water from the Indus to the Jhelum and Chenab rivers via the Taunsa-Panjnad Link Canal, which supplies water to Ravi, Jhelum, Chenab rivers in Punjab.
The Sindh Irrigation Department has written at least two letters demanding the immediate closure of the Taunsa-Panjnad (TP) Link Canal to prevent water shortages in Sindh.
Memon emphasised that the PPP stands for equitable distribution of water in accordance with the 1991 Water Accord. Earlier this week, PPP Chairman and National Assembly member Bilawal Bhutto Zardari warned at a public rally in Hyderabad that the party would launch a countrywide protest movement if the issue was not addressed in line with the water-sharing agreement.