JSM-R’s Riaz Chandio Opposes Irsa Act Amendments, Announces Protests

HYDERABAD: Jeay Sindh Mahaz-Riaz (JSM-R) Chairman Riaz Ali Chandio has voiced strong opposition to any proposed amendments to the Irsa Act, declaring that these changes threaten the rights and resources of Sindh.

Addressing a press conference on Sunday, Chandio announced a province-wide protest on September 22, followed by a shutter-down strike on October 20. These actions are in response to the government’s corporate farming plan in Sindh, which Chandio argues would unjustly take land from local communities. He called for these lands to be distributed among poor, landless farmers instead.

Chandio criticized Punjab for violating the 1945 water agreement with Sindh by constructing controversial canal projects, which have led to the depletion of Kotri Barrage downstream flows. According to him, these projects have devastated Sindh’s environment, particularly the world’s seventh-largest delta, leading to the destruction of mangrove forests and accelerating sea intrusion, which now threatens the existence of local communities.

He recalled that the 1991 Water Accord, signed during Nawaz Sharif’s government, was first breached under Sharif’s own party’s rule. In 1994, the Benazir Bhutto government introduced a ministerial committee’s agreement that allocated more water to Punjab. Since then, Punjab has allegedly received more water than agreed, under various administrations, including those of Musharraf and Zardari. These administrations also introduced controversial projects like the Thal Canal and small dams, according to Chandio.

Chandio stressed that the failure to construct the Kalabagh dam has led to 33 years of violations of the 1991 Water Accord by Punjab, contributing to the destruction of Sindh’s economy. He further warned that the proposed amendments to the Irsa Act and the Green Pakistan Initiative are part of a larger scheme to seize Sindh’s lands under the guise of corporate farming, while solidifying the PPP’s rule in the province.

“Sindh has become a paradise for outsiders, with its resources looted from Kohistan to Karoonjhar,” Chandio lamented.

He was joined at the press conference by Nawaz Shah Badahi, Dr. Khushal Kalani, Amjad Shoro, and other prominent figures.