TOBA TEK SINGH: Farmers from the villages on the banks of TrimmuSidhnal Link Canal of the tehsils of Kabirwala (Khanewal), Pirmahal (Toba) and Shorkot (Jhang) blocked Shorkot Cantonment-Darkhana roadfor severalhours on Thursday in protest against waterlogging of their crops and villages due to seepage from the canal.

They gathered near Chak 694/33-GB and raised slogans, demanding Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif fulfill his promise of brick-lining the canal.

Addressing the protesters, Pirmahal Farmers Action Committee president Chaudhry Shafgat Rasoool advocate, Niamat Kamboh of Kabirwala and Chaudhry Afzaal of Shorkot opposed the project under which Sem nullahs would be constructed along the canal to control waterlogging and demanded withdrawal of the decision.

They claimed that the MPAs of three affected tehsils had met the chief minister who had prom-ised to brick-line the canal, claiming the approved project of construction of Sem nullahs was a conspiracy of bureaucracy.

The protesters said more than 100,000 acres of farmland had been waterlogged and millions of people had been affected and water was flowing into their land and crops which had completely been destroyed while their houses were falling or developing cracks.

They showed the media the rooms of government high school of Chak 694/36 GB where two-foot deep water had accumulated in all the classrooms. They urged elected representatives to present privileged motions in national and provincial assemblies on the issue.

The protesters announced they would not allow the implementation on the Sem nullahs project and demanded implementation of feasibility report of National Engineering Services Pakistan (Pvt) Limited (Nespak) which had suggested brick-lining of the canal at the cost of Rs7 billion.