• PM summons CCI meeting on May 2, says waterways will not be built if agreement not reached
• Bilawal puts rumours of split to rest, says his party will continue working with PML-N
• PPP celebrates Sindh’s victory, CM Murad asks protesters to call off demonstrations
ISLAMABAD: After weeks of protests by political activists in Sindh, the federal government agreed to put the controversial canals project on the back burner, saying it will only proceed if a consensus among provinces is achieved at the Council of Common Interests (CCI), which is slated to meet on May 2.
The decision to put the project ‘on hold’ came during a meeting between the PML-N and the PPP, jointly chaired by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari at the Prime Minister’s House on Thursday.
The plan to carve out six new canals in Punjab was devised under the Green Pakistan Initiative (GPI) of the Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) to irrigate ‘barren lands’ for the purposes of corporate farming.
“Today in this meeting, we unanimously decided that no new canal will be constructed till the decision of the CCI,” PM Shehbaz told a joint press conference alongside Mr Bhutto-Zardari, after their meeting.
“[The] federation has an obligation that all affairs between provinces should be settled in the larger national interest. Same as the Kalabagh Dam, which was in the economic interest of the country, but we respected the point of view of the provinces and shelved it. We should refrain from any confrontation. Similarly, we should resolve the issue of six canals through mutual understanding,” the prime minister said.
He said the federal government had decided that no further development would be carried out on the canals issue without consultation among provinces. “Today, we decided to call the meeting of CCI on May 2, in which the PML-N and the PPP will endorse the decisions of this meeting,” he added.
The government will be engaging with all provincial governments to chalk out a long-term consensus roadmap for the development of an agriculture policy and water management infrastructure across Pakistan, he said.
To allay the concerns of all provinces and to ensure Pakistan’s food and ecological security, a committee is being formed with representation from the federation and all provinces. The committee will propose solutions to Pakistan’s long-term agriculture needs and water use of all provinces in line with the two consensus documents.
A subsequent press release issued by the PM’s Office also said that the meeting of the CCI shall be convened on May 2, wherein the PPP and PML-N representatives shall endorse the above-mentioned federal government policy, and any such proposals will be sent back to the relevant agency for consensus.
PPP to continue working with federal govt
Speaking during the presser, PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari lauded the decision taken by the prime minister and assured that, being a major ally of the government, the PPP would continue to work with it. The statement ended all speculations that the PPP could leave the ruling alliance, after which the ruling PML-N would not have the required number of votes in the National Assembly to rule the country.
The PPP chief said that after detailed discussions between the two delegations, an important decision was reached that no canal would be constructed without consensus among the provinces. He said the decisions of the meeting would be ratified in the CCI meeting on May 2, where it would be confirmed that canals would not be constructed with mutual agreement.
Earlier, Prime Minister Shehbaz condemned India’s latest move to sever diplomatic and links with Pakistan and said he also apprised Bilawal about the decision taken in an emergency meeting of the National Security Committee (NSC).
The PPP leader condemned India regarding the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty. “India’s announcement on the Indus Waters Treaty was not illegal, but against humanity. We will raise this issue vehemently on all international platforms,” he added.
The PPP leadership hailed the decision and called it “a victory for Sindh’s stance” under the leadership of Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari. In a statement, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah congratulated the PPP chairman for halting the controversial project.
“Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has in principle accepted the PPP’s position on the matter,” he said, adding that the decision to convene the CCI meeting on May 2 was a positive step. “I assure that Sindh’s case will be presented in a strong and comprehensive manner at the CCI meeting. As long as the PPP exists, not a single drop of Sindh’s water will be given away.”
He said that the PPP followed a democratic and constitutional path in addressing the issue, while those pursuing politics of chaos and division had failed.
Published in Dawn, April 25th, 2025
