Naseerabad Farmers Demand Action Over Prolonged Irrigation Water Shortage, Allege Illegal Diversion

Independent Report

DERA MURAD JAMALI, July 18: Farmers and growers in Balochistan’s agricultural heartland of Naseerabad have urged the provincial government to take immediate action to address a water shortage that they say has persisted for more than 13 years despite billions of rupees being spent annually on the desilting and maintenance of the Pat Feeder Canal.

Local farmers said they had repeatedly staged protests, road blockades and demonstrations over the past year, demanding a fair distribution of irrigation water, but claimed that the problem remains unresolved.

They alleged that influential political figures and large landowners illegally divert canal water through oversized pipelines, preventing adequate water from reaching tail-end areas. The farmers further claimed that some officials of the Irrigation Department have failed to take effective action against such practices. These allegations could not be independently verified.

The growers called on Balochistan Chief Minister Mir Sarfraz Bugti, Provincial Irrigation Minister Mir Muhammad Sadiq Umrani, Chief Secretary Shakeel Qadir Khan and Irrigation Secretary Suhail-ur-Rehman Baloch to launch a transparent operation against illegal water connections along the Pat Feeder Canal and its distributaries to ensure equitable water distribution.

They stressed that uninterrupted irrigation supplies are essential for protecting agricultural production and the livelihoods of thousands of farming families across Naseerabad’s tail-end areas.