Water theft

IRSA Sindh chief resigns

KARACHI: The chairman Indus River System Authority (IRSA), Amanullah Khan, has resigned from his post citing his inability to perform the duties.

In a letter to Ministry of Water and Power, he said it was difficult to carry out his official obligations so he was tendering his resignation.

The sources in IRSA Sindh said Sindh usually receives its irrigation water quota by May 7 every year but due to closure of CJ Link Canal, the Sindh growers have lost the benefit of May weather on the crops.

“Water theft is on the rise in Punjab and other provinces are not getting their due share of irrigation water,” he added.

Usually water from CJ Link Canal is released by April 15 every crop season but this time, Sindh is still waiting for its water share.

Sindh is still waiting for around 65,000 cusecs of water of its quota, whereas province has only received 23,000 cusecs of water this season, he maintained. The Punjab government released about 25,000 cusecs water from CJ Link Canal during 17 days of talks with Sindh officials.

Read more >>- Daily Times

Courtesy:  http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=20106\30\story_30-6-2010_pg5_12

Stop Sucking Indus River through illegal canals (leeches)

Harees of Sindh are awakening and fighting for their rights

by: Khalid Hashmani

Newspaper stories indicate that Sindhi Harees have reached the point where they feel that enough is enough. They are fighting back and it may be the beginning of the end of the exploiters who have dug illegal canals (Leeches)/ [Chashma Link canal] and dams to siphon off water from the Indus river before it reaches Sindh. Let us support their cause and join their struggle to bring an end to their plight.

Fresh violence erupts in Kashmir, 4 dead

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Read more >>- BBC

A Breakthrough in use of Sindhi on Internet

M.B. Sindhi

Sindhi Web Keyboard: A Breakthrough in use of Sindhi on Internet/ Web

by Abdul-Majid Bhurgri

I am really excited to share this breakthrough in use of Sindhi on Internet. In collaboration with KeyManWeb, I have got developed this virtual Sindhi Web Keyboard, using which you can instantly write in Sindhi on any webpage, without the need to install Sindhi support, fonts or keyboards.

All you have to do is simply drag a link to your browsers Bookmarks toolbar or right-click it and select “Bookmark This Link”. That is it. Now, when you want to write in Sindhi, all you have to do is click on this Bookmark as soon as the webpage has loaded in your browser and start writing in Sindhi. It really is as simple as that.

Using it, you can write Sindhi in any email (like Gmail, Yahoo, Hotmail, etc.), or search the web for Sindhi words and phrases using Google, Bing or any other search engine, and write your comments on any forums (like Facebook etc.) or blogs in your own sweet mother tongue Sindhi. You can also view the keyboard onscreen.

The Bookmark is available from my web page www.bhurgri.com. Alternatively, you can also go to Keyman Web page here, type Sindhi in search box or scroll to Sindhi keyboard in the list.

After this, there is no excuse at all for not using Sindhi on internet/web. Please convey this message to as many friends and mailing lists as possible to promote extensive use of Sindhi.

http://www.bhurgri.com

Can something be done to save this woman?

Son pleads for help as mother awaits stoning in Iran

By Gena Somra, CNN

(CNN) — Sajjad Mohammedie Ashtiani travels to a Tabriz jail in Iran every Monday to see his mother. And for 15 minutes each week, he speaks to his mother, Sakine Mohammedie Ashtiani, through the prison glass that divides them. Neither mother nor son ever know if the visit will be their last. Convicted of adultery in 2006, Ashtiani has been sentenced to be stoned to death for her alleged crime.

Originally sentenced to 99 lashes for her alleged “illicit relationship outside of marriage,” Ashtiani endured that punishment in front of her then 17-year-old son. “The authorities asked if I wanted to wait outside. I said no. I could not leave my mother alone.” Sajjad says it is a day he will never forget. But, he says, that day he thought the worst was over.

“I was thinking, OK, they hit her, now it’s finished. They told me this process was finished. She’s done. She’s free to go. ” But then a judges’ panel in Tabriz suspected Ashtiani of being involved in her husband’s murder and re-opened her case.

She was cleared of the murder charges, but the panel re-examined Ashtiani’s adultery sentence, and based on unspecified “judges’ knowledge,” decided she should be put to death for the alleged affair.

“At that time it should have been finished. They should have punished her only once,” says her son. “Her documents say she is innocent. She paid for the crime five years ago.”

Read more >>- CNN

What is Arteriosclerosis?

Arteriosclerosis is the name for the process that results in what is commonly called “hardening of the arteries.” A number of arterial disorders are grouped under this term. These disorders result in the narrowing and hardening of the arteries over time. In the arteriosclerosis process fats deposit in the inner walls of arteries. These waxy deposits are called plaque and are made up of a combination of fats, and cholesterol. A plaque deposit reduces the diameter of the inside of the artery, thereby reducing blood flow and then gradual obstruction can cause heart attack.

CHASHMA, MAIN CAUSE OF INDUS ARIDNESS

By Dr Ali AKbar Dhakan

In 1989, I visited Chashma Canal about 40 kms away from D.I Khan in NWFP towards north and 25 kms from Mianwali towards west in the punjab province… At the distance of one furlong from the gates upstream, I wondered to see that the water touched the tops of the gates and it looked as if the gates were about to break as all the gates were closed and no drop of water was flowing downstream of the gates looked dry and arid.So at that time I felt that the whole water of the canal was used as the reservoir at the upper side of the project in the Punjab and the Indus river remained arid and dry not during only the off season or winter but also during the season of summer or abkalani period. It is because of closure of all gates downstream, the shortage of water occur in the Indus River making the Sindh land barren and arid even during the summer season when the water in greater quantity flows due to melting of snow in all the mountainous areas of Pakistan.The chashma Barrage wet land site located Indus monsoon Forest comprises of a large barrage, a water storage reservoir and a series of embankments, serving as flood bounds which divides the reservoir into five shallow lakes at low water level Chashma Hydro power project is located on the right abutment of Chashma barrage on the Indus River near the village Chashma in the Mianwali district about 304 Kms northwest of Lahore. The project was estimated at Rs.18 billion including foreign exchange component of more than Rs.9 billion.Not only the constructing left Bank project, the water became very much scant in the downstream Indus river but it became more harmful for the Sindh when the Chashma right bank irrigation project was started in 1970 with a feasibility study by WAPDA to irrigate 14174 hectare in D.I Khan(NWFP) and 7075 hectare in D.I Khan Punjab.The actual construction of the canal was started in 1978 and completed in 1987.The other reason of shortage of water in Indus River was the Taunsa Barrage on the river Indus which was completed in 1958 to divert water to two large areas on the left and right banks of the river making irrigated agriculture possible for about 1.18 Mha of this arid landscape in Punjab province. These both projects of Irrigation on Indus river are the main reasons for making the Indus River arid and dry and have turned the Sindh Land barren and uncultivated since 2-3 decades.It is why the whole bed of the Indus River has been heaps of sand and created problems of cultivating and producing various seasonal crops in whole Sindh.Not only these two projects have been proved harmful for Sindh but the Indus basin Treaty with India in 1960 by the first Dictator regime of Pakistan under the leadership of Ayub whose Marshalaw caused the breakup of the country after his ruler ship of 10 years.