Hub water crisis threatens industries

Industries across Hub are grinding to a halt as an acute water crisis spirals out of control, even as the Hub Dam stands almost full, with leaders of the Hub Chamber of Commerce & Industry alleging that industries, farmers and residents are being systematically deprived of their due share of water.

Former Hub Chamber president Ismail Suttar and current President Yakoob H Karim have issued an SOS appeal to Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, urging his immediate intervention to avert what they described as an impending industrial, agricultural and humanitarian crisis.

They cautioned that unless water was supplied to Hub industries and the growing population according to actual demand, several industrial units could be forced to suspend operations within weeks, putting thousands of jobs at risk and dealing a blow to the national economy.

"Hub is the industrial backbone of Balochistan. If industries are deprived of water, production will come to a halt, workers will lose their livelihoods and the country will suffer significant economic losses," they said.

The chamber leaders noted that Hub was contributing more than Rs7 billion annually in taxes to the national exchequer, adding that prolonged water shortages would not only reduce government revenue but also adversely affect exports, investment and industrial growth.