Water preservation and allocation

Letter September 18, 2017
Pakistan has the 4th highest rate of water usage in the world, mainly sourced from the Indus River

KARACHI: According to a research by the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources, the country is predicted to face severe droughts by 2025, pertaining to the ever rapidly growing population and climate change. As per the report, Pakistan has the 4th highest rate of water usage in the world, mainly sourced from the Indus River. Also, being an agricultural economy, irrigational needs are primarily catered through traditional methods which stand outdated and less efficient. Much like most of the other political issues, the issue to build dams for water reservation remains a point of contention and political scoring between provinces. Externally, several rounds of talks over water issue between India and Pakistan have failed to deliver a solution plausible and practical for both the sides.

With heavy monsoon downpours, river floodgates from India are usually opened which then causes flooding in Pakistan. In the similar manner, during low seasonal precipitation lessened water flow causes minor droughts in the region, severely damaging crops in either situation.

A thorough upgrade of the water allocation and distribution system is the need of the time. Water management bodies must also take strict action against illegally owned water hydrants and private water supply businesses that earn major profits, while damaging the government run water supply system.

Ali Amin

Published in The Express Tribune, September 18th, 2017.

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