Daily Times

KARACHI: Three major opposition parties in Sindh Assembly submitted a joint resolution against the proposed scheme of Kalabagh Dam on Monday.

According to details, the joint resolution was submitted by the opposition leader in Sindh Assembly Firdous Shamim Naqvi. Interestingly, in the same petition that opposed the construction of Kalabagh Dam, lawmakers from Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) and Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA)supported the construction of Bhasha Dam. They submitted that all provinces had agreed on the construction of Bhasha Dam.

Following the session in which the resolution was submitted, PTI lawmaker and opposition leader Firdous Shamim Naqvi said that the scheme of Kalabagh Dam had already been rejected by three provinces. He said that the project was not in the interest of the nation. “We think that it should no more be considered,” he added.

“We oppose the Kalabagh Dam; however, we fully support the Bhasha Dam, because there is acute shortage of water in the country and new dams are necessary to store water for irrigation needs,” said Naqvi. Naqvi further claimed that Sindh Chief Minister (CM) Murad Ali Shah opposed the Bhasha Dam to make the project ‘controversial’.

Meanwhile, PTI leader Haleem Adil Sheikh told the media that the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) wanted to hide behind the issue of Kalabagh Dam. He said the PPP was trying to raise this issue to hide its thefts. He said that the project had already been rejected by three provinces and problems would emerge if it is constructed.

Haleem Adil Sheikh further said that the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) never supported the construction of Kalabagh Dam. “There is acute shortage of water in the country, but we will not support any controversial project,” said the PTI parliamentarian. Haleem Adil Sheikh clarified that fund of the Prime Minister (PM) was only for Basha and Diamair dams. He said that Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi had already presented a clear stance in the parliament in this regard.

Lambasting the PPP, the PTI lawmaker said that the PPP government had converted Sindh to ruins during the last ten years. He said that Tharparkar, Achro Thar, Kacho and Kohistan had been declared calamity-hit areas but no relief work had been initiated there by the Sindh government. “Children are dying on daily basis in the Thar due to lack of medical facilities but the government is not ready to take remedial measures,” said Haleem Sheikh. He added that the education system was in shambles because of the corruption of the provincial government.

Leader of Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) Hassnain Mirza said that the Sindh Assembly had rejected the Kalabagh Dam four times in the past and this was the fifth resolution directed at completely rejecting the project. He added that the GDA had always presented a clear stance on the issue of Kalabagh Dam.

MQM-Pakistan (MQM-P) leader Kanwar Naveed said that due to acute shortage of water in the country, it is feared that it would also face drought this year. He said that it was essential for all stakeholders to agree on the construction of dams and in case of Kalabagh Dam, there was no consensus. He further said that Kalabagh Dam was not in the interest of the nation.

Published in Daily Times, September 25^th 2018.