It seems that Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah has watched and been inspired by the blockbuster Indian film, ‘Three Idiots’, because he is giving everyone the impression that all is well with regard to rehabilitation of the Indus dykes.
On the contrary, the provincial government’s consultant on water, Idrees Rajput, and the chairman of the monitoring committee on repair work of the Indus dykes, Member Provincial Assembly (MPA) Dr Ahmed Ali Shah, have expressed unreserved dissatisfaction over the rehabilitation work.
The chief minister has claimed that all the 2,856 breaches in the Indus bund and the canal system have been plugged.
However, he is apparently unaware of the fact that the monitoring committee chairman, who was nominated by President Asif Ali Zardari to oversee the rehabilitation work of bunds, has time and again expressed dissatisfaction over the quality and pace of work being carried out in this regard.
On a point of order in the Sindh Assembly, MPA Shah said that the authorities concerned had reservations over the repair work of the Indus dykes, which was why they had formed the monitoring committee and chosen him as its chairman.
Besides, since the issue of the Indus dykes is extremely important, the MPA had also requested that nobody should engage in politicking over it because millions of lives are linked to it.
He said that the repair work of the Indus dykes should have been started earlier, soon after the flood, but it was greatly delayed.
Referring to the Aqil Agani dyke in Larkana, he said that this dyke is vital, so its repair work should be started as soon as possible.
He also said that he had witnessed loopholes in the repair work of the Indus dykes while monitoring and had submitted a comprehensive report about it to the president and the chief minister.
He further said that the flood had devastated over eight districts of the province and displaced millions of residents, so it has been difficult for the elected representatives to visit their constituencies just like they had been before the flood.
It is pertinent to mention here that while inspecting the rehabilitation work at the Ulra Jagir embankment in the Kingri area, the water consultant had appealed to the people living near the embankments to supervise the repair work because “the residents of these areas are well acquainted with the river behaviour and know in what manner the repair work should be carried out.”
Aal Izz Well with dykes… but they ain’t ready yet
