Drought and water shortages

HAYATABAD: According to a media report, the expected increase in population in the country will put tremendous pressure on water supply for households, industry and agriculture. The federal minister for Water and Power has said that a combination of global climate change, waste and mismanagement have led to an alarmingly rapid depletion of Pakistan’s water supply. In the next six to seven years, Pakistan could be a water-starved country. Also, the Asian Development Bank has reported that Pakistan was on the verge of being classified as a “water scarce” country. At present, Pakistan’s storage capacity is limited to a 30-day supply, well below the recommended 100 days for countries with a similar climate.

The country is currently beset with a clear and present danger — the desertification of its agricultural heartland along with a drought. This situation is partially of our own making and partially a result of climate change. The desertification of its fertile soil and the water shortage forecast a tragedy that can only be averted through a water management emergency in the country.

It is a need of the hour that a water emergency be declared in the country and the ministries of planning and development, and water and power tasked to plan and implement a fast track water policy primarily focusing on storage reservoirs and conservative use of water for agriculture and other uses. The country desperately needs more dams, both run of the river as well as storage, in order to store water for our agricultural and domestic needs besides generating cheap electricity to shore up our stagnant industrial growth.

Khan Faraz

Published in The Express Tribune, November 8^th, 2016.

Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.