Opposition's Fariha Razzak tabled the resolution that urged the provincial government to approach the federal government and ask for the release of the report which a technical committee on water presented to the government last August.
The PPP's Syed Qaim Ali Shah, though, casting aspersions on the competence of the committee headed by A.N.G. Abbasi, said it was constituted by the government and was not a representative body. While he averred that the Council of Common Interests (CCI) is the only constitutional body to take up such issues, he too urged the government to publicise the report.
Surely he is aware that it contains expert findings and opinion, not policy decisions. His purpose, apparently, was to make the point that Sindh would not accept whatever decisions the Federal government might want to make on the issue of big dams construction, in particular the much controversial Kalabagh dam project.
Last month, President General Pervez Musharraf had directed his own office, Pakistan Army's Engineering Corps and the Ministry of Water and Power to scrutinise the technical committee's report, within a 15-day timeframe, so that further steps towards the construction of big dams could be taken.
According to a press report, he had wanted to hold a National Security Council (NSC) meeting 'or' an inter-provincial meeting (the right forum for the purpose) some time in October to finalise a strategy for achieving national consensus before taking a formal decision on the construction of big dams.
Around the same time, the World Bank also announced that it would be ready to offer financial support "if and when the Government of Pakistan decides to build major new dams and ask for funds."
Then the quake struck, shifting the government's entire attention and energies, as they should have been, to dealing with the aftermath of that colossal calamity. When the NSC held its meeting it had a single point agenda of quake relief and rehabilitation.
Unsurprisingly, however, it had already authorised the President to take whatever decision he deemed necessary on the question of dams. And for his part, the President had indicated that he intended to take a firm position on the issue.
There is no denying that Pakistan needs to plan urgently to deal with the looming water crisis. It has to manage its water resources efficiently by building big and small dams. But in order to do that it must address the concerns of all the stakeholders.
Unfortunately, the inter-provincial dispute resolution bodies like the CCI hardly ever meet, which has not helped the smaller provinces to overcome their distrust of Punjab whom they accuse of wanting to gain at their expense.
They have opposed successive governments' attempts to start work on the Kalabagh dam project; the NWFP and Sindh assemblies have passed resolutions against it. Notably, when Qaim Ali Shah's party ruled at the Centre and wanted to go ahead with the construction of the dam, its own members in the NWFP Assembly voted for the anti-Kalabagh resolution.
Such is the level of provincial sensitivities on the issue. Hence whatever decision is to be made on this vital subject, it needs to be based on a well-informed determination of the national interest. It is imperative, therefore, for the government to release the said report for debate and discussion among the different stakeholders.
That might help the smaller provinces to overcome their misgivings, which, in any case, need to be addressed in an inter-provincial forum.