HYDERABAD: Literati, journalists, artists and experts in different fields exchanged their views on Sindh`s culture, art, civilisation and history at the two-day `10th Hyderabad Literature Festival`, which ended at the Sindh Museum on Sunday.

The pressing issue of water sharing among provinces was discussed threadbare at a session titled `Indus is our lifeline`.

Dr Fatima Hassan, a distinguished poet and intellectual, while speaking at the inaugural session, emphasised the need for carefully assessing the current regional situation, and noted that `as the world is facing decline and chaos of civilisations, our centuries-old identity remains closely tied to our civilisation and culture`.

She said that until the British conquest of Sindh in 1843, Sindh`s cultural activities, forests and orchards were on a par with any of the subcontinent`s cultural centres.

She said the significance of Hyderabad`s geography, society and history was quite authentic; and it witnessed a battle for resistance. She mentioned that this city preserved its own status.

`Sindh`s last Talpur ruler, Mir Naseer Talpur`s Divan-i-Jaffery, being an Urdu and Persian-language memento, can represent this city`s literary status,` she said. She added that the Battle of Miani, fought in the city`s forests, was proof of any nation fighting for the preservation of civilisation.

She remarked that civilisation and culture were two identities of a nation that promised it a status among the comity of nations.

`Indus Valley is undoubtedly a region that holds the first place in the history of civilisation,` she said while explaining civilisation and culture in a detailed way.

She called for a detailed analysis of regional conditions, considering the fact that the entire world was witnessing a decline in civilisations and cultural chaos.

Citing excerpts from a book, Culture and Civilization of Ancient India authored by D.D. Kosambi in 1779, she said the author mentioned that the civilisation of Mohenjo Daro and Harappa had reached its zenith. She added that the urbanisation in these cities was glorious, reflected in their urban settlement landscape, which included widened roads, lavatory systems, use of bricks etc.

Dr Akash Ansari, a poet, expressed concern over the fact that the `Indus River is being killed`, adding that if river fiows were diverted upstream, Sindh would become a graveyard.

Professor Noor Ahmed Jinjhi said that Sindhi society revolved around gatherings, literary events and festivals. He said these events were also indicative of the fact that Sindhi society was a living one.

Professor Iqbal Shah, also a poet, read his poetry `Khizan Sep Mohabbat`. Hesaid he believed that `love` transcends the rise and fall of everything and is permanent.

The festival was organised by private sector sponsors in collaboration with the Culture Department.

HLF organiser Izhar Soomro welcomed the guests and gave a bacl
`Indus is our lifeline` Eminent experts and activists sharing their views in a discussion contended that water for six canals would ultimately be diverted from Indus although it was a proven fact that water was unavailable in system to create new command areas.

They said that plan of six canals reminds many of one century old Sutlej Valley Project in Indus River Basin System (IRBS) in which similar canals were proposed on the basis of fictitious figures.

A session titled `Indus is our lifeline` was held on Day-2 of the HLF. Moderated by Tahira Joyo, the panelists including Dr Sorath Sindhu, a social activist, Naseer Memon, a water analyst and Mohammad Ehsan Leghari, Sindh`s member at the Indus River System Authority (Irsa), discussed issue threadbare in a session.

Naseer Memon termed it an issue of IRBS and not of the Indus River alone.

He traced the history of water conflicts in basin. He mentioned that Sutlej Valley Project planned around one centuryback had fake figures for the Cholistan area to cultivate five million acres of land and experts at that time had objected to the figures contending that water was not available in system.

He said at that time around 200maf (million acre feet) water used to flow in Indus which has now been reduced to less than 10maf as many canals and dams had been built since then.

Now, he said, the same project was being talked about in the name of Greater Cholistan to irrigate 6.6m acres of land.

All those objections raised by Englishmen on the Sutlej Valley Project are now being raised by Sindh on the plea that `flows are just unavailable`.

He said falce data was produced then and the same was being shared now to claim surplus flows for the Cholistan lands.

Ehsan Leghari argued that whatever case for new canals, but water from Indus would be diverted eventually considering the fact that Ravi, Sutlej and Bias had already been sold under Indus Basin Treaty by dictatorial regime notwithstanding the fact that these were principal tributaries of Indus. He said not only these flows were cut but cultivable command area in Mangla and Jhelum area were fed by Indus through link canals.

`Sindh government is clear that a single drop of water is unavailable for new canals. If still canals are built, then the lower riparian`s share will stand undermined,` he remarked and said that inorder to tempt Sindh politically it was told that the Thar Canal offshoot of Reni Canal at Guddu Barrage was being created for province. `When we don`t accept Reni Canal then where did Thar canal come from?` he asked while declaring it an issue of Sindh`s survival and a conspiracy against Pakistan.

Memon said that problem had already been identified and the people of Sindh could stop it only through a democratic struggle. `Point is who is responsible for it? PPP government is under obligation to stop it and we need to ensure a consistent struggle on the issue as it was seen in the case of Kalabagh dam and Greater Thal Canal projects,` he said.

Sorath Sindhu said: `It`s time for a battle, and not struggle ... this is an attempt to occupy the Indus River` Ehsan Leghari said: ``We need to increase our political and institutional capacity for water governance. He called or ensuring water flows for Sindh in line with the 1991 Water Accord. He also emphasised the need for aligning water issue with primary to higher education syllabus in Sindh.

Soorath Sindhu in her concluding remarks, called for a common platform by producing a `Qaumi Manshoor` of Sindh was needed. She said protests should be staged at the sites of canals and in Karachi.

Naseer Memon agreed with her, saying that people of Sindh had already set a precedent in this regard and they need not to look towards rulers who would avoid listening to the masses.