Sindh govt rejects Punjab's letter to IRSA on water distribution

Karachi: The Sindh government has rejected the letter written by the Punjab government to the Indus River System Authority (IRSA) on water distribution.

Reacting to the Punjab government’s letter to IRSA, Sindh Irrigation Minister Jam Khan Shoro said that the Sindh government rejects the letter.

Jam Khan Shoro stated that Sindh should be given its share of water under the 1991 Water Treaty. Sindh’s canals faced a 62 percent water shortage in the first 10 days of April, while Punjab’s canals endured a 54 percent water shortage.

Sindh Irrigation Minister Jam Khan added that under the 1991 Water Treaty, all provinces should face equal shortages.

He also said that cotton and rice should be cultivated in Sindh at this time. We are only able to provide drinking water, while wheat is being harvested in Punjab at this time.

Punjab govt's letter to IRSA

The Punjab government on Monday wrote a letter to the IRSA on water distribution.

In the letter written by the Punjab Irrigation Department to IRSA, it has taken a strong stand on giving Punjab's share of water to Sindh, saying that there was a total water shortage of 16 percent for Rabi crops, due to which Sindh was given 19 percent less water and Punjab was given 22 percent less water.

According to the text of the letter, there is a 43 percent shortage of water for Kharif crops, and even in this, more water is being withheld from Punjab and less from Sindh.

The issue of illegal water supply to the Rice Canal at Sukkur Barrage was also covered up. It is also important to mention here that the decisions taken in the technical and advisory meetings of the IRS in March are not being implemented. In the presence of irrigation secretaries of all the provinces, a decision was made to provide water to Trimo, Panjnad, and Chashma Canals, added the letter.

The letter stated that it was also decided in the meeting that to reduce pressure on Mangla, water would be given to Punjab's TP and CJ canals from Tarbela, for which 8,000 cusecs of water was to be taken from Mangla Dam, but due to non-availability of water from Tarbela, an additional 17,000 to 20,000 cusecs of water is being taken from Mangla.

According to the text of the letter, giving less than the share to Punjab and more than the share to Sindh is increasing anxiety among farmers, unfair measures can create a problem of law and order.