The Super Court of Sindh (SHC) has issued an order of stay stopping the construction of channels after a challenge to the water availability certificate issued by the authority of the Indus River system (IRSA), Express News reported Monday.
The court listened to a petition by questioning the legality of the certificate, which is required for channel construction projects. The Bank has sought a detailed response from the federal government before April 18.
The IRSA had previously approved the water supply for the Cholistan channel system project, issuing a certificate that allowed the Punjab government to build the channel, which branches from the Sutlej River in Sulemanki Headworks.
However, this movement has been played by Sindh, which has called it “unfair.”
Meanwhile, in a statement today, Sindh’s irrigation minister Jam Khan Shoro, described the court order as a historical decision. He reiterated the provincial government’s demand to appoint a suitable Sindh representative for IRSA and cancel the channel projects.
The channel problem has caused strong political reactions in Sindh, where local leaders argue that the rights of the province of water are being avoided.
The protests have exploded in Sindh in recent weeks as the construction proposed by the federal government of new channels in the Indo River intensifies.
Civil society groups, farmers and political activists have led to the streets, warning that controversial projects could deepen water shortage in the lower riverside province.
The demonstrations have been fed by the fear that the planned channels, including the Cholistan channel, would deprive Sindh of their fair part of the water, in violation of the 1991 water agreement.
In response to the growing public pressure, the Sindh assembly unanimously approved a resolution in March rejecting the construction of six new channels in the Indo.
The resolution described the illegal projects and asked the Federal Government and the authority of the Indo River System (IRSA) to immediately stop any related activity.
He also demanded that all provinces, particularly Sindh, consulted before any development, to ensure that their constitutional water rights are maintained.
Reinforcing the position of the province, the president of the PPP, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, issued a strong reprimand to the federal government during a demonstration in Larkana. He warned to the center that “recedo” of the channel projects, calling them a threat to the national unity and the livelihood of Sindh.
Bilawal reminded the crowd of the historical opposition of his party to similar projects, including the Kalabagh dam, and reiterated the PPP’s commitment to the justice of water and interprovincial harmony.
