ISLAMABAD  -  The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) has given nod to the construction of Cholistan Canal and Systems-Phase I despite strong objection from the Sindh province.

The Central Development Working Party (CDWP) has rec­ommended the project related to the construction of Cholistan Canal worth Rs211.340 billion to the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council (ECNEC) for further consider­ation, official source told The Nation. During the meeting of CDWP, the representative of Sindh government asked the forum to wait for the decision of Council of Common Interests (CCI) on the construction of Cholistan Canal, the source said.

The CDWP, which met with Minister for Planning, Devel­opment and Special Initiatives Ahsan Iqbal in chair, who is also deputy chairman Plan­ning Commission, was asked by Chairman Sindh Planning & De­velopment Board that the prov­ince is taking the project to CCI for consideration, the source maintained. He requested the forum to defer the approval of Cholistan Canal till the final de­cision of the CCI, source added.

According to the source, Sindh has raised objections to con­struction of Cholistan Canal Cho­bara Branch and conditioned its construction of the canal with the increase in water availabil­ity. Sindh has conveyed its objec­tions to the Ministry of the Water Resources. According to Sindh’s stance, the availability of water should be increased before con­structing the proposed canal. Sindh fears that the construc­tion of the canals will reduce the province’s share of water.

According to Punjab stance, Cholistan Canal will get flood wa­ter for four months while water will be supplied from the Punjab part for the rest of the month. However, Sindh is not ready to accept the Punjab’s stance.

In response to Sindh’s objec­tion, the Ministry of Water Re­sources has conveyed that the Ministry cannot solve this prob­lem and the province should raise the issue in the CCI. Simi­larly, the Executive Committee of the National Economic Council had also linked the proposal for the construction of various ca­nals, including Cholistan Canal, under Green Pakistan Initiative, with the approval of the CCI. In February 2024, the Executive Committee of the National Eco­nomic Council had conditionally approved a plan titled “Develop­ment of National Irrigation Net­work for Green Pakistan Initia­tive,” the source said.

However, to allay the concerns of the provinces, the approval of the proposal was subjected to approval by Council of Common Interests (CCI), the source said. The development of national irrigation network for Green Pakistan Initiative plans for the construction of various canals in­cluding Cholistan Canal, Greater Thal Canal (GTC), construction of Kachhi Canal, construction of Rainee Canal, construction of Thar Canal and construction of Chashma Right Bank Canal (CRBC). The province of Sindh has serious reservations over the construction of Cholistan Flood Feeder Canal and Greater Thal Canal (GTC), the source said.

Green Pakistan Initiative (GPI) is a flagship project under the ambit of Special Investment Facilitation Council (SIFC) un­dertaken through collaborative efforts by Pakistan Army with federal/provincial govern­ments with an aim to enhance agriculture potential of Paki­stan by increasing cultivable areas. Launched in 2023, pilot project under the ambit is the Corporate Agriculture Farming effort in Greater Cholistan. The idea is to bring 400,000 acres of desert body of Cholistan under cultivation in the phase-I. To achieve the goal, the construc­tion of Cholistan Flood Feeder Canal has been proposed.

The Sindh government has decided to present its case against the Cholistan Canal to the CCI. The technical sec­tion of the Planning Commis­sion also recommended to the CDWP that Cholistan project consideration may be subject­ed to approval of CCI. However, the CDWP that met last week, recommended the construc­tion of Cholistan Canal and Sys­tems-Phase I worth Rs211.340 billion to ECNEC for further consideration. The project is proposed to be financed through Annual Development Plan of the Punjab government.