ISLAMABAD:
Low rainfall and rising temperatures over the years in Islamabad have caused severe water shortage, which is further compounded by the influx of migrants into the city.
Islamabad, as the country’s capital, has comparatively more facilities than the rest of the country and people have shown a marked preference to shift to the metropolis from all across the country. The rapid influx of outsiders has multiplied many civic issues including water scarcity.
Presently, the city needs around 120 million gallons of water per day to cater to the roughly 1.5 million people who live in the city.
The problem is that only 84 million gallons per day are available for most of the year, and even that drops to about 60 to 65 million gallons per day when the monsoon season is delayed or there is insufficient rainfall.
Many sectors including I-10 and 1-9, G-10 and G-11, are either without water these days or are getting less supply than they would expect in winter.
To address the situation, many households are extracting underground water by digging tube wells, and have inadvertently taken their toll on underground aquifers.
“There has been no water in our flats for four weeks and this situation has continued erratically for months now,” said Mehmood Farooqi, a resident of PHA flats in sector G-11. We cannot store water as there is no such system in the flats, nor can we install a well to extract underground water, Farooqi added.
Fahim Khan, a resident of I-9, said that they used to get water twice a day through the main supply line, but now they get it once every two to three days.
According to experts, the temperature in the federal city has increased over time. This summer, it reached 48 degrees, while highs in the 40s have become something of a norm. With heat waves becoming a common phenomenon in the city, the demand for water has understandably increased.
Simly, Rawal and Khanpur dams are the city’s primary water sources, but for many years they have not gotten anywhere near their full capacity because of inadequate input from rainwater. In fact, all three dams’ reservoirs had hit dead level before the recent rains, meaning they could not be used to supply water.
Saleem Sheikh, an official in the ministry of climate change, said that there is a serious water issue in Islamabad and the situation will worsen in the coming years due to climate change. “Some 10 to 15 years back, underground water was available at 40 to 50 feet deep, but now there is none even at 200 feet deep in many most parts of the capital,” he said.
“The government should make laws against wasteful behaviour and make a rainwater harvesting policy under which it should be obligatory for each house in cities where there is adequate rainfall to have rainwater harvesting systems,” he said.
Izzat Khan, A borehole digger, said that few years ago, he would only get one or two jobs every six months. “But now, I dig an average of four boreholes every month.”
“People don’t get water from pipelines and there is not much rain. Previously, we would get water at 100 or 120 feet deep. But now we have to go 200 feet deep. Depending on depth, boreholes cost upwards of Rs120,000 and many households cannot afford one, so usually four or five households pool money and share the well.”
No planning
CDA Chairperson Farkhand Iqbal admitted that the civic body never developed any long-term water policy in the past. He added that it was after his arrival that the CDA developed both a short and long-term water management policy to meet the challenges.
According to Iqbal, around 35% of water is wasted due to dilapidated water supply lines, which will be plugged. USAID is also providing 100 efficient water motors next week which can pump water faster than those currently available, which will help overcome loadshedding-related issues, Iqbal said.
To address the water issues in the long term, the authority has signed an agreement with the Chinese government, which will ensure the supply of 200 million gallons of water per day to Islamabad from Tarbela Dam, with the project due for completion within three years.
The project, which will cater to the water requirement of the city for 60 years, “will cost $1.2 billion and finances will be provided by a Chinese bank at an interest rate of 1.2%”. He said the civic body also plans to power the tube wells through solar means, ensuring unhindered water supply even in increased power cuts.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 15th, 2012.
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