Three dozen Sindhu Bachao Tarla (SBT) activists are observing a two-day hunger strike in front of the World Bank office for their plight caused by the World Bank funded Taunsa Barrage Rehabilitation Project and to highlight their sufferings.
They were of the view that it was the failure of the newly revamped Taunsa Barrage undertaken with the help of foreign loans totalling Rs 10 billion that led to the devastation of the Muzaffargarh District in Punjab Province. They said the barrage had failed mainly because of its inappropriate design, inattention to the raising and strengthening of protective embankments, dysfunctional computerised control system of hoist gates and an absence of hill-torrents management. They demanded both the World Bank and provincial government initiate the process of accountability in the light of the report of the Punjab Judicial Flood Enquiry Tribunal.
They also asked the World Bank to cancel the loan allotted to Taunsa Barrage Rehabilitation Project and to allocate it to the rehabilitation of severely affected local communities with the commitment of the provincial government. The SBT activists asked the World Bank to stop financing the rehabilitation project for the Jinnah Barrage because the project not only deliberately ignored cost effective alternative options but it was also bound to cause huge financial losses to local communities because of irregular irrigation supply during the construction phase. The activists demanded the World Bank ensure the fulfillment of all commitments with respect to the compensation of losses made during the resettlement plan of Taunsa Barrage Rehabilitation Project.
They said they would launch the “Occupy World Bank” campaign in the near future if their demands were not positively responded to.