The Sindh High Court (SHC) has referred a petition about water shortage issue faced by tail-end growers of Naushero Feroz district to District & Session Judge Naushero Feroz to hold an inquiry into the matter and submit a report within a month.
A division bench of the SHC headed by Justice Muneeb Akhtar was hearing a petition filed by veteran politician Zafar Ali Shah and others who moved the court against the provincial irrigation department for its failure in providing tail-ender growers with water for irrigation.
The court appointed Zafar Ali Shah as focal person who will represent other petitioners before the inquiry office. The court ordered the judge to issue notices to superintendent engineers Rohri and Khairpur Canals and officials of the irrigation department to appear before him.
The court directed the district and sessions judge to nominate a senior judicial officer as inquiry officer who shall visit lands of the petitioners including relevant canals along with officials of the irrigation department to understand grievance of growers.
After visiting the sites, the inquiry officer would submit his report to the district and sessions judge who would go through the report and scrutinise it. After completing the inquiry, he would submit a report to SHC’s member inspection team (MIT), the court instructed the judge.
Syed Mureed Ali Shah, counsel for petitioners, submitted that since 2010 there had been acute shortage of irrigation water at the tail-ends of canals of Naushero Feroz during entire Kharif season owing to stealing of water by breaking water course, tampering with the water outlets and blocking of the water distributaries by upper riparian.
The Faiz Ganj Canal feeds 115 sanctioned water courses but much higher number of illegal water courses had sprung up and they were drawing from the canal under the supervision of the officers of irrigation department, he claimed.
He stated that tail-end growers were deprived of their legal share of irrigation water due to these illegal practices which were being carried out in collusion with the officials of irrigation department.
He said growers had repeatedly requested the officials of irrigation department to redress their grievances and held protest demonstrations to get their demand met but their efforts bore no fruit.
Instead, he said, Kot Lalu Police lodged an FIR against peaceful protesters under Sections 341, 353, 337-H2, 427, 148, 149, 504-PPC and Section 7 of ATA nominating 37 persons for holding demonstrations.
He said officials of the irrigation department were illegally exercising their power in protecting, helping and safeguarding the water thieves by not taking any action against them and causing irreparable loss to growers.
He requested the court to direct relevant provincial authorities to stop illegal drawing irrigation water and remove pumps tampering water outlets.