Indian move to render Pakistani land barren: government urged to seek world powers' intervention

Indian decision to allow its farmers in East Punjab to use water without tariff is a well thought-out conspiracy to turn Pakistan's land totally barren, and the government should seek world powers' intervention to stop India from using water as tool against Pakistan.
The Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) President Shahzad Ali Malik, in a statement on Monday said that Indian move shows that Delhi has intensified its water war and is out to destroy Pakistan economically by inflicting colossal loss on agriculture of the country.
He said he feared that if the issue was not addressed immediately then the days were not very far off when the agrarian economy of Punjab, the food basket of the country particularly, would be destroyed. "Fast extraction of water in Indian Punjab is a grave issue, and the government should use the influence of global players to get this issue resolved amicably."
Shahzad said that the water level in the areas bordering India has alarmingly gone down and only because of this reason the farmers are forced to install tube-wells much deeper. Pakistan's farming community is in deep trouble as they need a lot of money to pump out water through costly electricity. He said that the Lahore Chamber had already established 'Pakistan Water Front' with the objective to invite government's attention towards Indian moves aimed at using water as tool against Pakistan. The LCCI has also prepared a comprehensive programme to create awareness among all the stakeholders on water issue, he added.
The LCCI President urged the government to initiate work on Kalabagh dam without any further delay as it is not an issue of Punjab alone but it is matter of country's survival that is at stake due to fast depleting water resources. He urged the civil society to play its role to save Pakistan.
He said that Kalabagh and Bhasha dams construction was recommended by a highest-level World Bank team in 1960s; so there was no question of Punjab being the sole beneficiary of Kalabagh dam. He said that he had been talking about the issue for a long time now, but unfortunately neither any politician nor any government gave due attention towards this problem which has now put the very survival of the country at stake.
He said that all those who were opposing the Kalabagh dam were doing disfavour to the whole nation, so much so that they were playing with future generations of this country. He said that it was unfortunate that the decision makers were not the victims of wrong decisions they make as it would only adversely impact the common man. He said that those who are opposing the construction of the dam are in fact enemies of the people.
He said the Kalabagh dam issue has been so much politicised that a consensus would not be possible. The political leadership, he added, is manipulating the issue for their advantage. He said civil society would have to play a crucial role in creating a larger consensus as new large water reservoirs would benefit every Pakistani.
It is pertinent to mention here that India is constructing about 35 hydropower projects on Chenab river and many on Jhelum, and Sindh rivers which will reduce the surface of water flows by about 33-35 million acre-feet annually. Delhi has developed the agrarian economies of East Punjab, Rajisthan and Haryana states by extending zero power tariffs to the farmers of these states but this has led to a massive decline in water level in Punjab, Pakistan.