Minorities ‘pay extra’: Rains for all, relief for some

by Hafiz Tunio

14th sep 2011

BADIN: 

The floods have wreaked havoc across Sindh but the most vulnerable of its people, the scheduled castes, have to pay an extra price.

Organisations conducting relief efforts, and not just the religious ones, have been discriminating against the scheduled castes, Mohan Kolhi, a community chief living near Khoski town, told The Express Tribune.

A religious organisation set up a relief camp in Khoski town but not a single bag was distributed to members from the scheduled caste community, he said. “When we visited the relief camp, the prayer leader of the mosque told us that the ration is only for Muslims,” said Kolhi, adding that they were not even allowed to drink water from fountains set up outside the camps.

“Sindh is our motherland and we have been living here for centuries,” he said. “So what if we are scheduled castes? We are also humans.”

Indebted, ruined

Sindh’s scheduled castes, including the Kolhis, Menghwars, Bheels and Oads, are predominantly employed as farmers in Badin district.

These Hindu farmers usually take loans from landlords and tend to the land with their families all year round to pay back. As such, they are most vulnerable to the devastating rains and ensuing floods.

“My landlord loaned Rs50,000 and I used it to plant cotton on 20 acres,” said Kolhi. “All my crops have been damaged. I don’t know how I will pay back my landlord,” he added.

Kirtar Lal Menghwar, an agricultural expert who works at the Laar Humanitarian and Development Program (LHDP) corroborated Kolhi’s account.

Organisations that have set up relief camps in towns are following in the footsteps of banned religious organisations and discriminating against minorities, he said. “They ignore the scheduled castes every time disaster strikes, whether it is cyclones, floods or heavy rains,” said Menghwar.

The 50,000 scheduled caste members living in different villages across Badin are facing similar problems, he added.

(Read: A view from Badin)

All’s not bleak, however. Sattar Zangejo, who is affiliated with a UK-based donor organisation Oxfam, said they have received directives to focus on vulnerable segments of society. These segments include non-Muslims and scheduled castes that have been ignored in the past.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 14^th, 2011.

" They ig nore the scheduled castes every time disaster strikes, whether it is cyclones, floods or heavy rains," Agriculture expert Kirtar Lal Menghwar. PHOTO: Reuters

Sindh floods: LBOD was a mistake, experts finally agree with residents

The channe­l is being redesi­gned and work will be starte­d after 2013.

By Z Ali

Published: November 30, 2011

The out fall drain begins from Ghotki and ends at the Arabian Sea via Badin district. PHOTO: AFP

HYDERABAD:  Horrified by the catastrophe unleashed by the recent monsoon rains, people of the flood-affected areas want an immediate solution to Left Bank Outfall Drain (LBOD), which they hold responsible for their predicament.

The damage caused by the saline water channel, rather than its benefits, was the topic of discussion at a seminar organised by Oxfam and Laar Humanitarian Development Programme (LHDP) on Monday.
The out fall drain begins from Ghotki and ends at the Arabian Sea via Badin district. During the monsoon rains in August and September, it overflowed in parts of Shaheed Benazirabad, Sanghar, Mirpurkhas, Umerkot and Badin districts, affecting over eight million people and destroying millions of acres of crops.
According to an anti-LBOD activist, Prof. Ismail Kumbhar, the artificial control of natural water has only spelled disaster. “The water used to flow through hundreds of creeks before it discharged into the sea,” he said. “The attempt to have only a single outlet to the sea, a 42-kilometre Tidal Link, was destined to fail.”
The mighty drain started functioning in 1996, but the Choleri Weir – a regulator to control the backflow of the water at Tidal Link, the last part of the drain which meets the sea, was ripped apart when a cyclone struck in 1999. Sea water began to flow back into the fertile land since then and led to the extinction of many species of flora and fauna.
Fateh Notkani, a resident of Luari Sharif in Badin district, said he has yet to observe a single advantage of the drain for the people. “You claimed that you built a marvel when Choleri Weir was finished. It will push back the sea,” he referred to the claims of Water and Power Development Authority and the foreign financers of the project. “Now come and show us where it is?” Muhammad Yousuf Bajeer, a resident of Kadhan in Badin, called attention towards the contamination of drinking water, as fresh water mixed with the saline water from the drain. Loss of cultivable land created resentment against the LBOD during the last decade, but unfortunately, the recent floods exacerbated the problem. Bajeer predicted that the local aquifers in a lot of villages in Badin will be contaminated by the saline water.
A resident of Jhuddo in Mirpurkhas district, Ahmed Ali Jamali, pointed out that the people who lost their homes, land, livestock and livelihood because of the LBOD since 1999, have yet to be compensated.
The environmental consultant from the firm hired by the Sindh Irrigation Development Authority (SIDA), to carry out a five-year study on redesigning the LBOD, also agreed with the residents.
Muhammad Saleh Soomro, himself a resident  of Badin, said that the very concept of controlling tidewater by a regulator like Choleri Weir was a mistake. “Even the foreign engineers could not rebuild the weir after it broke in 1999.” He said that the experts are studying options to revive the historic flow of the water. The National Institute of Oceanography in Karachi will approve the plan to redesign the LBOD before its implementation starts after 2013, said Soomro.
SIDA’s managing director, Ehsan Laghari, told the audience about the short-term measures planned by the government to prepare for the monsoon in 2012. “The government will cut off the choked part of LBOD, remove encroachments from its route and revive some of the historic waterways like Dhoro Puran in Mirpurkhas.” They will be implemented in the coming months, he said. But he also emphasised on the need for swift lawmaking to remove encroachments that obstruct the natural flow of water.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 30^th, 2011.

Badin people want role in decisions about LBOD Dawn news of LHDP Seminar

Badin people want role in decisions about LBOD

M. Hussain Khan |

 Metropolitan > Karachi | 

From the Newspaper
news link
http://www.dawn.com/2011/11/30/badin-people-want-role-in-decisions-about-lbod.html

HYDERABAD, Nov 29: Ordinary residents of Badin district whose lives and properties have been periodically affected by the Left Bank Outfall Drain have urged the government to involve locals in decisions about the drain, without which it would not be able to arrive at right conclusions.

They said that locals` input was all the more essential in the wake of recent disaster caused by heavy rains and breaches in the LBOD.

Addressing a seminar on “Causes of damage and disaster in Badin” organised by the Laar Humanitarian Development Programme (LHDP), the speakers who were from the union councils of Badin which were severely hit by heavy rains, said the authorities never bothered to consult locals.

Prof Ismail Kumbhar who was part of a study on the LBOD carried out in 1997 shared findings of the study with participants and said people were bearing the brunt of poor planning and design faults in the LBOD.

The Right Bank Outfall Drain (RBOD) would also have serious repercussions in future on the right bank of the Indus, he warned.

People had also expressed serious reservations over Kadhan-Pateji Outfall Drain (KPOD) and Dhoro Puran Outfall Drain (DPOD), he said.

The LBOD, he said, was designed to reclaim 1.2 million acres of land in Sanghar and Mirpurkhas districts but the project backfired. Its tidal link was washed away in 1999 followed by Cholri Weir.

He said that Nareri Lake, a Ramsar site in the Indus delta, was destroyed but authorities remained unmoved despite hue and cry by people affected in 1999 cyclone and 2003 rains.

He cited a World Bank inspection panel`s observation, which had admitted design faults in the LBOD. Funds for LBOD`s upkeep were not utilised and the drain`s bed was not cleansed of weeds, he said.

Mr Kumbhar said that people wanted to know what was being done under a master plan for a drainage network along the left bank of the river.

He disputed authorities` claim that LBOD had withstood a flow of 20,000 cusecs of water against its designed capacity of 4,600 cusecs and said that the drain`s banks needed to be strengthened.

A farmer Ahmed Ali Jamali said that a system like that of LBOD was needed but not at the cost of people. Saline water should be taken to the sea but communities living along the drain should not be disturbed. “It is a question of our survival. Rights organisations should take notice of it,” he said.

He said the damage caused by the drain over the years had made 45 species of cattle and 30 of insects extinct. LBOD was a demon that was killing people again and again, he said.

Sindh National Front leader Ayub Shar said the government had done nothing for people displaced by rains. Foreign funds received for providing relief to rain victims should be spent under a check and balance system, he advised.

Peasants` leader Punhal Sario proposed that authorities could discuss proposal for treating LBOD`s water with stakeholders in each district it passed through.

Saleh Soomro who works with Loius Burger consultancy firm which was working on a master plan for left bank area`s drainage system said his firm was discussing proposals for installing gates near the KPOD to contain backflow of tide to reduce pressure on LBOD.

He said that Cholri Weir fiasco created a serious problem while Tidal Link allowed sea intrusion and thing went beyond control, he said, adding that lakes in the area were to be rehabilitated. The surface drain`s water had less effluent content and could be used for irrigating land, he said.

The managing director of the Sindh Irrigation and Drainage and Authority, Ehsan Leghari, said that LBOD could not be redesigned because people of Badin would feel it would lead to more serious consequences after redesign.

“The LBOD has a design fault that allows sea intrusion and it has less capacity than what is needed,” he claimed.

Under a short-term plan the government would rehabilitate old and natural routes of drainage and an anti-encroachment law was on the anvil to do away with encroachments along the routes of old waterways, he said.

He admitted that areas like Tando Mitha Khan, Samaro, Jhando Mari, Jhuddo, Pangrio and Kaloi were still under rainwater. “LBOD`s banks will be strengthened  and bed will be cleansed to increase its capacity,” he said.

November 30, 2011 (2 weeks ago)

Seminar on LBOD Coz of damages disaster in Badin 28th November 2011 Indus Hotel Hyderabad

LHDP jointly with Oxfam organize Seminar on LBOD Impacts Coz of Damages on 9^th August to 13 October Rain Disasters in District Badin. A number of experts, Government civil society leaders and elected representatives participate in the Seminar. Seminar was held at Cristal Hall Indus Hotel Hyderabad.

This is first time all stockholders from community participate in this event specially people from affected Union Councils village and shared their experiences especially because of the LBOD faulty structure.

Venue: Crystal Hall, Indus hotel, ThadiSarak, Hyderabad

Date: 28^th November 2011

By:Laar Humanitarian and Development Program

Participants: ninety three

Seminar started with the name of Allah and followed by the orientation done by SattarZangejo on the causes of this seminar arrangement.

Speakers:

1.      AhsanLeghari MD CIDA

2.      MohdSalehSoomro Social Scientist

3.      Noor Mohd Bajeer Civil Society

4.      PunhalSarioCivil society activist

5.      IqbalHyder Executive Director

6.      Prof. Ismail Kumbher Expert

7.      AyoubSharPoliticle activist

8.      AmeerMahndroHumanitarian activist

9.      Ramchand Community resource person

10.  Ahmed Ali Jamali Community resource activist

11.  FatehmohdNotkani Community resource person

Also NisatrKhokhar senior journalist KTN, Asgharleghari Manager Programs LHDP, Akhter sheikh Students political leader,Shakeelbachani senior journalist, JavedsozHalai Civil society activist, Akashsantorai senior journalist, Jabbarbhatti civil society activist, wahidkandhro journalist, shafiquekandhro civil society activist also participated in this seminar with the number of community resource persons from District Badin.

Separate transportation has been arranged for community resource persons to provide pick and drop facility from their village.

Lunch has been arranged.

Most of devastations occurred in the lower part of Sindh called Laar during these heavy rains because of breeches in the faulty structure of LBOD and most of the affected villages are very near to that major or sub drain area, as heavy rains caused flood not only at our local level in the district Badin but also to the upper parts of Sindh province and this drain begins from Ghotki and ends at the Arabian Sea. During the monsoon rains in August and September, it overflowed in parts of district BenazirAbad(Nawabshah), Sanghar, Mirpurkhas and release its water to the sea through Badin districts, affecting eight million people and destroying millions of acres of  agriculture land and livestock.

The LBOD, he said, was designed to reclaim 1.2 million acres of land in Sanghar and Mirpurkhas districts but the project backfired. Its tidal link was washed away in 1999 followed by Cholri Weir.

Mr. AhsanLeghari Managing Director Sindh Irrigation and Drainage Authority ‘SIDA’ said that, It is agreed that the fault in LBOD is due to the resistant to natural flow of water, at some places this natural flow line is overlapped through this LBOD structure with the result the huge quantity of water does not allowed through this structure because of its design and capacity at the same time natural flow also disturb of this structure, this not only obstruct itself the drain water but also causes obstructions in the natural flow of water as well. Another drawback is that it allows sea intrusion.

“The LBOD has a design fault that allows sea intrusion and it has less capacity than what is needed,” he claimed.

Under the short term plan the government would rehabilitate old and natural routes of drainage and an anti-encroachment law was on the anvil to do away with encroachments along the routes of old water ways. “The government will cut off the choked part of LBOD, remove encroachments from its route and revive some of the historic waterways like DhoroPuran in Mirpurkhas.”

Redesigning of LBOD is also the question mark because the people of Badin have lot of concerns over there.

Salehsoomro the consultant Luis berg that there is a need to install back flow pressure gates near KPOD in order to reduce high tide pressure on LBODPeople had also expressed serious reservations over Kadhan-Pateji Outfall Drain (KPOD) and DhoroPuran Outfall Drain (DPOD)

He cited a World Bank inspection panel`s observation, which had admitted design faults in the LBOD. Funds for LBOD`s upkeep were not utilized and the drain`s bed was not cleansed of weeds, he said.

He disputed authorities` claim that LBOD had withstood a flow of 20,000 cusecs of water against its designed capacity of 4,600 cusecs and said that the drain`s banks needed to be strengthened.

IqbalHyder Executive Director LHDP has concern over the design fault, its capacity and the strategy of WB and the government as well

WB has formulated world class expert’s team for the study of LBOD’s destructions and the destruction of livelihood options also natural fauna and flora, lakes and other things like water resources as well. They agreed that they rehabilitate local fauna and flora, natural habitat, climate change, echo system and payments to the affected communities. No rehabilitation initiatives have been taken yet by World Bank and its associated donors and this is the crime even after agreed things.

This LBOD is not a gift from donors but it is a faulty funded project and the government is taking more and more funds from such type of donors of no means.

We have concerns over the availability of our selves, because of the expert’s opinion that the coming three years are very important of water years and lot of water will be available in these coming three ages.

What is LBOD structure? It has no base, no borders, no capacity? All is nothing more than destruction.

Fatehnotkani resident of village Turab Ali notkani said that the big destruction is on its way following 1999 cyclone which vanished Choleri Weir, and now lot of creeks are growing up to destroy agriculture land and no protection over there from the last 12 years, that was the only structure which was available in those days to push back the sea. He claimed the WAPDA for show where this Choleri Weir is?..

Mohammad yousaf Bajeer community activist has shared his experiences that the water level is going to exceed up to the upper level and the underground water is going to become saline of sea introsion and the mixing up of drained chemically contaminated water with this, and the local populace is going to become the careers of various chronic diseases.

A farmer Ahmed Ali Jamali said that a system like that of LBOD was needed but not at the cost of people. Saline water should be taken to the sea but communities living along the drain should not be disturbed. “It is a question of our survival.

He said the damage caused by the drain over the years had made 45 species of cattle and 30 of insects extinct. LBOD was a demon that was killing people again and again.

AyubShar political activist admitted that government had done nothing for people displaced by rain floods.

PunhalSario proposed that all districts concerned authorities should treat water before its release into LBOD the major drain.

Report / Project Officer  Viram Kumar Khatri

Sattar Zangejo Media Communication Coordinator