Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah expressed his satisfaction with the progress of the lining work at the Kalri Baghar feeder during his visit to Thatta on Tuesday. He announced that he had issued directives to accelerate the lining process and achieve timely results.
The project aims to address Karachi's water scarcity challenge, with the city requiring 260 million gallons of water per day. "The Kalri Baghar feeder project will help meet this demand, and the World Bank has played a crucial role in its completion," said Syed Murad Ali Shah during a media talk.
He further stated that the World Bank had been working on an augmentation project for Karachi and had never wanted any reduction in the water share. As a result, the capacity of the Kalri Baghar feeder will be increased from 7,800 cusecs to 9,500 cusecs.
"The lining project will be completed by January 2026," the CM noted, adding that provincial minister Jam Khan Shoro had been supervising the project. Shah revealed that despite receiving less funding from the federal government this year, the provincial government had managed to complete 40% of the Kalri Baghar Feeder project.
Answering a query regarding the controversial six-canal scheme, he reiterated that the stance of the provincial government and the top leadership of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) was clear. He quoted PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s speech on the 17th death anniversary of Benazir Bhutto, where he opposed the six-canal project. He further stated that the PPP government would oppose this project in the same way it had opposed the Kalabagh Dam. "This project would turn Sindh barren," Shah warned.
During the media talk, the Chief Minister discouraged the frequent use of the term "Interior Sindh" by media persons and urged them to replace it with "rural Sindh."
He expressed deep grief over the situation in Parachinar and said that, at the request of the Governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Sindh government had sent relief goods for the victims. He further mentioned that protests had ended at eight locations in Karachi after successful talks with the protesters, while negotiations were ongoing to resolve protests in the remaining four areas.
"We have never opposed peaceful protests, and the Parachinar issue should be resolved peacefully," the CM proposed, adding that it was the responsibility of the government to address the people's problems.
He praised the Sindh government for launching bus services in the main cities of Sindh and announced the revival of the SRTC bus service on the Thatta-Hyderabad route. The journey of development will continue in the new year, Shah hoped, and urged the people of Sindh to strengthen the government by fulfilling their responsibilities with loyalty.