HYDERABAD: The Sindh Abadgar Ittehad (SAI) held a meeting under the chairmanship of its president, Nawab Zubair Ahmed Talpur, where strong condemnation was expressed over Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz’s statement regarding water and controversial canals.
The participants said her remarks would spread provincial hatred, which is not in the interest of the country. The meeting rejected the apology tendered by federal ministers over the issue and demanded that Maryam Nawaz herself apologise directly to the people of Sindh.
The SAI demanded that sugarcane be fixed at Rs600 per maund, paddy at Rs4,000 per maund, and wheat at Rs4,500 per maund, arguing that the current rates fail to cover production costs. They urged the government to immediately issue a notification for the sugarcane price, as sugar mills are about to start operations.
Similarly, they called for the immediate announcement of the wheat price at Rs4,500 per maund, rejecting what they termed as excuses and subsidy dramas that deceive farmers in the name of fertilizer subsidies.
The meeting also condemned the alleged misbehaviour of rice millers’ representatives with farmers in Badin in the presence of the deputy commissioner and appealed to farmers to boycott business with them.
Warning of the food security risks, the SAI cautioned that if the government once again delays fixing the wheat support price, cultivation will further decline next season. The meeting demanded that the agricultural income tax be set at a uniform 10 percent across the board.
Expressing satisfaction over the overall water situation in the country, the SAI nevertheless demanded an end to the artificial water shortages in Sindh’s tail-end areas. The meeting announced that a protest will be staged on October 8 in front of the Deputy Commissioner’s Office in Tando Muhammad Khan against the reduction in paddy prices.
