Rohi People Oppose Canal Construction

Awami Tehreek delegation from Sindh meets local people of Cholistan

Bahawalpur

The people of different areas of Cholistan Desert have opposed the construction of new canals from Indus River and the government’s Corporate Farming project.

“We will not allow any occupation of our lands, grazing fields, or water resources,” they declared while talking to the delegation of Awami Tehreek from Sindh, who visited the Cholistan areas of Kathri and Surriyan Toba.

The delegation of Awami Tehreek, consisting of Central Senior Vice President Noor Ahmed Katiyar, Advocate Sarwan Jatoi and Malik Riaz, visited the Cholistan areas and met with local residents of Rohi, including Dilbar Mehr, Muhammad Khalid, Muhammad Usman, Owais, Ali Hassan, Abdul Ghani, Haji Habib, and Haji Deen Muhammad.

During the meetings, the local people expressed that they are against corporate farming, the construction of canals from the Indus River, and the handing over of Cholistan’s land to foreign companies. They stated that the lands of Cholistan around them are being encroached upon, and their routes have been blocked.

Speaking to the locals, Awami Tehreek leader Noor Ahmed Katiyar said that the rulers of Punjab consider Sindh and the Siraiki region as conquered territories. He added that 7 million acres of land in Cholistan are being given to Arab countries and other multinational companies for corporate farming. Just as the Ravi, Sutlej, and Beas rivers were sold to India in exchange for money, similarly now the rulers are selling millions of acres of land in Sindh, the Siraiki region, and Balochistan to companies involved in corporate farming.

He said that the Sindhi and Siraiki people will jointly resist and foil the anti-national conspiracies of the rulers.

Leader of the Siraikistan National Alliance, Jam Faizullah, stated that the people of Cholistan are helpless and abandoned. Fear and terror have been spread among the population, but this will be firmly resisted. He said that corporate farming is a deadly poison.

Leader of the Pakistan Siraiki Party, Shakir Qayyum, remarked that corporate farming is not just an issue of Cholistan, but a problem for the entire country. He pointed out that the issues of Sindh and the Siraiki region are identical. He questioned, “When the people of Cholistan are not getting drinking water, where will the water for new canals come from?”

On this occasion, local residents of Cholistan, along with leaders of Awami Tehreek, Pakistan Siraiki Party, and Siraikistan National Alliance, jointly decided to hold a “Save Rohi Cholistan Conference” in the Surriyan area of Cholistan. (PR)

Read: Sindh’s Battle for the Indus

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