Panel on canals in the offing

The federal government has decided to set up a high-level negotiations committee led by Deputy Prime Minister Ishaq Dar to address the concerns raised by the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and other parties regarding the Indus canals project, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) sources said on Monday. According to the sources, the committee will include ministers for planning, water resources, energy, and food security, as well as the prime minister's adviser on political affairs, along with water and agricultural experts. The committee aims to resolve the canals controversy through negotiations, they added. The Indus canals project has triggered massive protests across Sindh. The Sindh government of the PPP is staunchly against any canals on the Indus river. PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has threatened to pull out of the ruling coalition if the project was not abandoned. Several other parties and civil society organisations have also been staging sit-ins at various locations in the province to oppose the project. They express the apprehension that the new canals would aggravate the water shortage in the province. Sensing the seriousness of the issue, Prime Minister's Adviser Rana Sanaullah spoke with Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Memon on Sunday and offered dialogue to resolve the issue. Rana again spoke with Memon on Monday and both sides agreed to carry forward the negotiations process. A key leader of the PML-N told The Express Tribune that the concerns of the PPP and other parties over the canals project and the protests in the province were discussed in a consultative meeting of the top party leadership a few days ago. In the meeting, PML-N president Nawaz Sharif and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif agreed that the issue should be resolved through negotiations. Consequently, the PML-N decided to form a negotiations committee to engage with the PPP and other stakeholders. The source said that the negotiations committee would be finalised with the approval of the prime minister, adding that Shehbaz might also meet with President Asif Ali Zardari and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari to find an amicable solution to the issue. "The government committee will also hold talks with other parties on this issue," the source said, adding that these parleys would be held in Karachi and Islamabad. "A joint action plan will be decided to resolve this issue," the source said. According to the sources, the prime minister might convene a meeting of the Council of Common Interests (CCI), if necessary, while the PML-N was also weighing the option of convening an all parties conference on the project. Meanwhile, Rana Sana held a phone conversation with Sharjeel Memon – their second in as many days – to discuss the canals issue. Both parties agreed to continue the consultation process. Rana emphasized that the PML-N is committed to resolving all issues through mutual understanding. He stressed that a province's water share could not be transferred to another province under the Water Accord. He added that water distribution is an administrative and technical matter, which can be addressed at the appropriate administrative and technical levels. Separately, Water Resource Minister Moeen Wattoo told media persons in Okara that the ambiguities on the issue of new canals and water distribution would be removed soon and the matter would be resolved amicably according to the Indus River System Authority (Irsa) law. "Those who are indulging in point-scoring on the water issue will fail. The Cholistan Canal will get water from Punjab's share and according to the Irsa law, no province can stop another province from using its share of water," he told reporters. Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif had tasked Rana Sanaullah to contact the PPP leaders and the issue would be resolved after discussions. "We should sit down and talk about the problems that Pakistan faced and reach an understanding to resolve them. The PPP is our ally in the federation and, God willing, the water issue will be resolved soon," the minister said. (WITH INPUT FROM OUR OKARA CORRESPONDENT ATIQUR REHMAN)

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