Growers protest as Chashma canal not repaired.

DERA ISMAIL KHAN -- Landowners and farmers on Sunday complained about a long delay in the repair of the Chashma Right Bank Canal and threatened to stage street protests and block national highways.

The threat was issued during a meeting of the Chamber of Agriculture here on Sunday.

President of the organisation of landowners and farmers Haji Abdul Rasheed Dhap told reporters that the last year's heavy floods damaged infrastructure in Dera Ismail Khan, including irrigation channels.

He said the monsoon disaster also caused massive damage to the Chashma Right Bank Canal, which irrigated around 0.45 million acres area.

Mr Dhap said Dera Ismail Khan supplied wheat and other agricultural commodities to the entire country but it hadn't cultivated any crop for the last six months.

He said the continuous protest of landowners forced the provincial government to allocate...