The federal government on Sunday announced it will initiate dialogue with the Sindh government to address mounting concerns over the Cholistan canals project that critics allege will boost water scarcity in the downstream province.
Adviser to the Prime Minister Rana Sanaullah initiated the process by calling Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon, seeking a means to find common ground. Both sides, according to a statement, agreed the issue should be resolved through consultation rather than confrontation. Sana informed Memon both Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) President Nawaz Sharif had directed beginning dialogue and taking Sindh’s concerns seriously.
Sanaullah went on to say no province’s water share could be diverted unlawfully, adding the federal government believed in just and equitable distribution of resources. He also stressed that the issue should not be politicized. A day earlier, he had told media that constitutional mechanisms and laws ensured fairness in the distribution of water between provinces.
Memon, per the statement, welcomed the federal government’s willingness to hold talks. However, he stressed, the PPP’s stance was clear and relied on the 1991 water agreement. He maintained the Sindh government would not accept any “unconstitutional diversion of its water.”
Under the Green Pakistan Initiative, the Punjab government has announced a project to construct six canals on the Indus River to irrigate barren land in Cholistan. Sindhi nationalist parties and the PPP have opposed the project, claiming it would reduce water availability for Sindh, which routinely complains about not receiving its due share of water.
Last week, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari threatened to withdraw support for the federal government if the project was not scrapped.
Ironing out Differences
Separately, the PPP and PMLN’s coordination committee held a meeting at Governor’s House in Lahore to resolve differences between the allies. The PMLN’s representation included Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar, Punjab Assembly Speaker Malik Ahmad Khan, Adviser to P.M. Rana Sanaullah, and Senior Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb, while Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, Nadeem Afzal Chan, Punjab Governor Sardar Saleem Haider Khan, Ali Haider Gilani and Syed Hassan Murtaza represented the PPP.
Following the meeting, Khan and Murtaza acknowledged the issue of water rights was discussed between them. The Punjab Assembly speaker stressed the Indus River System Authority governed water distribution, noting that climate change had reduced the availability of water. The issue, he said, had also prompted complaints of water shortage in Punjab.
Emphasizing the issue should not be politicized, Khan said it should be resolved on the basis of factual data. He said Sindh had the right to “jealously guard” its water share just like Punjab or any other province. Recalling the Kalabagh dam project was shelved because of the political differences, he said the canals issue should be discussed and resolved.
PPP’s Murtaza, meanwhile, said both parties had agreed to continue working together for the sake of national stability. However, he maintained, the PPP had serious reservations regarding the canals, wheat procurement, local governance, and farmers’ protests. “Sugarcane growers haven’t been paid by mills yet,” he claimed.