Dera farmers stage sit-in against delay in repair of canal.

DERA ISMAIL KHAN -- The local farmers and growers staged a sit-in here on Wednesday against delay in repair of Chashma Right Bank Canal (CRBC).

The protesters blocked the main road at Syndicate Morr to all types of vehicular traffic for many hours.

Earlier, a sit-in was staged by the growers, farmers and members of Chamber of Agriculture against the delay in the repair of CRBC at Mission Morr.

The protesting farmers and growers had given a 48-hour ultimatum to both provincial and federal governments to start the repair work on CRBC otherwise they would expand the scope of their protest.

After the expiry of the deadline, the farmers and growers staged sit-in at Syndicate Morr. They said that local politicians, federal and provincial governments and relevant department were not interested in repairing the canal.

Protesters say they will not be able to cultivate wheat crop

They said that they would not be able to cultivate the wheat crop due to lack of irrigation water. 'The sugarcane crop cultivated on thousands of acres has dried up due to lack of water,' they added.

The protesters said that 400,000 acres of land was irrigated by the canal. They added that further delay in repair of CRBC would cause a severe food crisis not only in Dera Ismail Khan but also in the entire Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province.

The demonstration was led by...