Proposed amendment : K-P’s request for water compensation in limbo

Response over amendment proposed by province for IRSA Act delayed .

PESHAWAR:

Concerns over water management are growing and so are the grievances.

Although the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa government moved to amend the Indus River System Authority (IRSA) Act 1992 in March, it has not heard back from the committee constituted to resolve the problem under the Council of Common Interest (CCI).

The committee constituted under the CCI is headed by the Federal Minister for Water and Power, Khwaja Muhammad Asif. Speaking at a meeting held recently, a high-ranking official from the Ministry for Inter-Provincial Coordination said the irrigation department had informed the government that not a single session of the committee has been convened so far.

Although the provincial government sent a reminder to the council on June 1, a response has yet to be received.

Water distribution

According to the summary sent by K-P to the council, IRSA was established to monitor and regulate water resources in accordance with the Water Apportionment Accord.

“Under the accord, Punjab was to get 47.7%,” read a copy of the documents available with The Express Tribune. “Meanwhile 41.7%, 7.5% and 3.3% would be allocated to Sindh, K-P and Balochistan, respectively.”

In order to utilise the assigned quota, the federal government was expected to facilitate one scheme each for all four provinces under the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP).

“The first phase of development has been completed at the Greater Thal Canal in Punjab, Rainey Canal in Sindh, Kachhi Kanal in Balochistan,” stated the documents. “However, Chashma Right Bank Canal (CRBC) lift-cum-gravity project, which will provide water for irrigation to the southern districts of K-P, has not been approved for over two decades due to a lack of funding.”

Waiting for CRBC project

According to insiders, this has not only increased the cost of the CRBC project but has also prevented the province from utilising its share of water

The K-P government has proposed amendment in Section 8(1)(f) of the IRSA Act 1992. Under the provision, any question that may arise between two or more provinces in respect of distribution of river and reservoir water can be settled. However, the provincial government had suggested the inclusion of compensation mechanisms for use of water rights.

Through this amendment, compensation can be sought for K-P’s share of water. Furthermore, the government also wants to devise a formula whereby payment of arrears can be worked out.

The amendment has sparked a debate amongst provinces but Balochistan has endorsed K-P’s claim.

“The claim for arrears has not gone down too well with the provinces which are using a larger share of water,” said an official from the ministry of water and power. “There does not seem to be any solution to the problem anytime soon.”

Benefits anticipated

The K-P irrigation department has estimated around 1.1 million, 15,000 and 600 hectares of uncultivated land will be watered if the project is approved.

The main beneficiaries of the project will not only be the southern districts of K-P but even of southern Punjab.

The issue is likely to trigger a heated debated amongst provinces in the CCI. Officials privy to the developments said Chief Minister Pervez Khattak has taken a stand on the issue and it is likely to be taken up on various platforms.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 29^th, 2015.