Emerging cartel: Capital water woes exasperate residents

Calls to regulate water tanker prices to end fleecing

ISLAMABAD:

The growing population and subsequent growth of residential settlement had put the capital's natural resources under severe stress with its wetlands, cleaner environment and water resource depleting gradually.

Once known for its serene evenings, open spaces, sparse population and healthy lifestyle, Islamabad has undergone several transformations in recent years. It has seen more road infrastructure and taller buildings along with a large number of private housing societies developed in the suburbs.

This came with a population explosion that has seen the number of people in the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) area experiencing a 150 percent increase in numbers during the period 2008-2018.

This greater strain on resources meant that there was more environmental pollution and greater demand for natural clean water. This took on its toll on streams and waterways as well as groundwater with the table going down from 80 to 100 feet two decades ago to 250 to 300 feet at present.

As residents come across severe water shortages during summer, they are compelled to buy water from private operators through water tankers. These operators are now emerging as a cartel fleecing the citizens in the name of water provision in the absence of any mechanism to fix rates.

"We pay water bills to our societies but they fail to meet our water needs. We have no option but to buy it from tanker owners who charge us as per their desire," said Adil Mahmood, a resident of Doctors’ Town.

"We fail to understand why the authorities do not take action in this," he said. "It is unjust that on one side they charge for routine water supply and on the other sell us water in tankers."

The tube wells installed to pump out groundwater are often choked due to depleting water tables leaving the residents at the mercy of the water tanker mafia. The situation gets worse in the summers.

Water tanker owners charge Rs2,000 to Rs4,000 for each tanker and sometimes more if water is required urgently.

Although the housing societies also provide cheaper water tankers, they take 24 to 48 hours to reach one's residence.

"Forget about society water tankers as they will arrive when you don't need them anymore," said Irshad Ahmed, a resident of the PWD colony. "The management of these societies should seriously think about a mechanism for water supply. Otherwise, the situation will continue to worsen with each passing year."

Many housing societies have sprung up along the Islamabad Expressway for the the people moving to the capital from other cities. The problem was said to be even worse there.

"We regularly supply water to our residents with the water channels opened in all sectors for a specific time every day," said an official of the Pakistan Town Housing Society. However, since the underground water resource is depleting, water supply cannot be ensured for the whole day, he continued.

The official claimed that the water supply was maintained even during summer when consumption is high. “As far as delay in tankers supply, it occurs only when demand rises,” he added.

He said that the provision of all amenities is assessed at the time of development.

It includes the number of plots and houses to be constructed, and the number of people expected to live in them.

Water extraction

The district administration issues permission to rent land from where water is pumped. The owners install pumping stations and sell water to tanker owners who ferry it to residents. However, this process lacks a pricing mechanism.

"We earn a nominal profit as we have to pay for water to the pumping station owner and for fuel and repair of our vehicles. If the price of fuel, vehicle parts or water increases, we have no option but to charge more," said Zahid Mahmood, a tanker owner.

"Calling us an emerging cartel is unjust. We are in this business only because the administrators of societies and managers of the city have failed to meet the resident’s water needs,” he continued.

Regardless of the point of view of the different parties, the situation demands the city managers to devise a comprehensive strategy to meet the future water needs of ICT.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 18^th, 2023.