Awami Tehreek holds rally against canals project, corporate farming

SUKKUR: A large rally was organised by the Awami Tehreek in Tando Jan Mohammad, Mirpurkhas against six new canals, corporate farming, amendments to the IRSA Act, and the controversial ‘Green Pakistan Initiative’.

Women, children, farmers, students, and local residents, holding protest placards, participated in the rally in large numbers.

The rally was led by Awami Tehreek’s Central Senior Vice President Noor Ahmad Katiar, Central Information Secretary Lal Jarwar and other leaders.

Addressing the rally, the Awami Tehreek leaders stated, “Canals on the Indus River are an attack on Sindh’s existence. The people of Sindh will never tolerate the robbery of their river.”

They accused the incumbent rulers of constructing dozens of canals and dams on the Indus River without Sindh’s consent, leading to severe devastation of Sindh’s crops. “Sindh is facing an acute water crisis, with the Indus Delta once the world’s sixth-largest delta now 90 percent destroyed.”

They said the current government is now selling the Indus River to corporate farming companies to develop Punjab’s Cholistan Desert, calling it a “genocidal conspiracy against 70 million Sindhis”.

The leaders strongly condemned corporate farming, asserting that 4.8 million acres of land countrywide, including in Sindh, are being sold to foreign companies and labeled it as an “anti-state conspiracy”.

They alleged that President Asif Ali Zardari auctioned the Indus River by approving six new canals under the ‘Green Pakistan Initiative’, effectively turning the Presidential House into a marketplace for selling Sindh’s resources.

The Awami Tehreek leaders demanded immediate cancellation of corporate farming projects, six new canals, and the Board of Investment Amendment Act 2023. They also sought restoration of Sindh’s rightful share of water and the closure of Punjab’s canals, including TP and CJ link canals.