Protesters fear than a plan to modernise agriculture could leave the lower riparian province of Sindh without water.
The Pakistan government has launched an ambitious agricultural project with the aim of boosting food security in the South Asian nation of 240 million people.
A network of six canals will be built across the country to irrigate millions of acres of barren lands as part of the $3.3bn (945 billion rupees) project called Green Pakistan Initiative (GPI), which was launched by the country’s powerful army chief General Asim Munir and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif in 2023.
Inaugurated by Munir and the chief minister of Punjab province last month, the canal project has been hailed by supporters as a game-changer that will transform vast desert lands into fertile farmland.
Munir praised Punjab, the most populous province, for its role as the “powerhouse of Pakistan’s agriculture”, adding that the military would continue its support for the country’s economic growth.
But critics say the megaproject, which aims to build canals across Pakistan’s four provinces, would cause water shortages in the southern parts of the country. They say the project was planned without consent from stakeholders.
The GPI, according to many sceptics, will further stress Pakistan’s river system, which has seen decreasing water levels due to climate change and overexploitation.
Numerous protests have taken place in the southern province of Sindh since the project was announced, with the latest demonstration taking place on March 25 in major cities including Karachi, led by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), the governing party in Sindh which is also supporting the Sharif-led government.
So, what is the GPI? What is its scope? And why are some of its proposed canals facing such strong resistance? READ MORE from Al Jazeera
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