Water Crisis in Pakistan: A Necessity of Life Demanding a Solution

[Signalian]

In recent years, lots of concerns related to the water crisis have surfaced in national newspapers. Innumerable debates have occurred on the construction of dams, not just for electricity but also to counter the water crisis. The term "water war" has also surfaced and speculations are intensifying. Some reports even say that Pakistan will run out of water by 2025.

Construction of dams yield lots of advantages; water storage and power(electricity) production for sure but can also help and succour in flood control, irrigation and even generates jobs for decades to come. The saga of Kalabagh Dam is well known, however a number of small dams have been built in the past decade in Pakistan, which include Darawat Dam , Dandy Dam , Gomal Zam Dam, Satpara Dam etc.These dams are a good source of water for irrigation of land and also act as reservoirs to store water. A few Hydro- power plants have been built in recent past too such as Allai Khwar Hydro-power plant, Neelum-Jhelum Hydro-power plant etc for the generation of electricity.

Pakistan is located at a very strategic landscape encompassing mountains, plains, forests and deserts. The mountains bring the Glaciers in the lime light as glaciers are one of the primary sources of water and Pakistan is considered to have abundance of glaciers (7253 known glaciers). Pakistan is further blessed to have four seasons and apart from them also faces a fifth season, monsoon, which brings plenty of rain. The Government of Pakistan must take advantage of glacier and monsoon season, and take effective measures to store and conserve water, as on the flip side, the glaciers and monsoon have resulted in floods in the past sometimes due to lack of preventive measures and infrastructure.

The most critical part of water crisis is the awareness for the conservation of water. The Government of Pakistan is urged to organize and administer water conservation campaigns in all cities of Pakistan. Through this manner, the Government and the public will join hands to combat the water crisis in their own spheres. The public on its part can start by implementing small changes for efficient use of water such as: turning off taps when water is not in use during shaving and brushing teeth, fixing leaky faucets/pipes on urgent basis, using broom to clean drive ways and garages instead of hoses, not watering lawn on daily basis but when required etc and on a larger scale to recycle water such as routing water used in sink towards flushing toilets.

The report that Pakistan will run out of water by year 2025 paints a very grim picture but Pakistan has seen many crisis in the past and is still encountering multiple crisis on many fronts, the water crisis being one of them. Pakistan has withstood natural calamities and internal conflicts. Pakistan is a country of Saints and Sufis. A lot of prayers are made for prosperity of Pakistan everyday. There are many talented, patriotic and dedicated Pakistanis within the ranks of Pakistan's establishment who work with sincere efforts to direct the country on the right track.

Collectively, with the joint efforts of Pakistani Government and Pakistani public, the water crisis can be handled effectively, with proper management and utilization of resources.

Written by : Arslan Javed

http://meetarslan.blogspot.com/2018/06/water-crisis-in-pakistan-necessity-of.html

 

[Khurram2349]

Pakistan has to fight water war at three fronts !

No.1 / Our eternal enemy India is stopping our water by making dams in eastern rivers and also funding Afghanistan to stop our western river water by making dams there !

No.2 / Same Indians are pouring billions of rupees in the mouth of traitor politicians to make sure no dam is made within Pakistan and make them controversial !

No.3 / Mismanagement of water by our own incapable Governments !

I agree 100 % with the author that Pakistan is land of Sufi and saints and also that it is made in the name of Allah Subhanah so Allah is on our side but then it is also our duty to fight for our right and take necessary steps to win the war on all three fronts.

I am sure that public awareness of this deepening crisis will bring forward the right kind of people to tackle this problem . The nation should be ready to go to war with our eternal enemy India as it is better to die fighting rather then just die of thirst doing nothing.

Pakistanis should learn the lesson from the martyrs of Karbala . Just like evil forces of Yazid deprived the water to the family of Prophet of Islam PBUH , todays tyrant India is doing the same to the country which is made in the name of Islam . Just like Hazrat Abbas e Alamdar fought his way to get water we need to be ready to fight our way with the Yazids of today and dont be afraid to sacrifice our lives for sake of our land and believes !

May Allah save Pakistan and bring victory to us !

 

[Mahmood-ur-Rehman]

Stop the water of those who are against dams those are the worst enemy of Pakistan and coming generations will will take them as traitors even people of Sindh Baluchistan will say.Now they have started tasting the water shortage which will become worse in years to com. Now save your wild life and waste water to sea

 

[Kuru]

What else do you expect when you mismanage this whole water thing. But saying that Pakistan will be out of water by 2025 seems too bad to be true.

 

[blueazure]

defence.pk has a serious problem with indian trolls,

What else do you expect when you mismanage this whole water thing. But saying that Pakistan will be out of water by 2025 seems too bad to be true.


I'm glad you didn't say nuclear war, at least you're one of those Pakistanis who still have faith in Pak Army
*ThumbsUp*

pl explain how are we wasting water ?

last time i checked, we had seven barrages on the indus alone, 4 on chenab . ( besides numerous dams) .

pakistan is saving every last drop of water despite the fact that you chuthiyas are reducing flows on our rivers


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moderators , pl enforce a rule, if an indian farts a useless one-liner, kick him out .

 

[Panther 57]

Pakistan has to fight water war at three fronts !

No.1 / Our eternal enemy India is stopping our water by making dams in eastern rivers and also funding Afghanistan to stop our western river water by making dams there !

No.2 / Same Indians are pouring billions of rupees in the mouth of traitor politicians to make sure no dam is made within Pakistan and make them controversial !

No.3 / Mismanagement of water by our own incapable Governments !

I agree 100 % with the author that Pakistan is land of Sufi and saints and also that it is made in the name of Allah Subhanah so Allah is on our side but then it is also our duty to fight for our right and take necessary steps to win the war on all three fronts.

I am sure that public awareness of this deepening crisis will bring forward the right kind of people to tackle this problem . The nation should be ready to go to war with our eternal enemy India as it is better to die fighting rather then just die of thirst doing nothing.

Pakistanis should learn the lesson from the martyrs of Karbala . Just like evil forces of Yazid deprived the water to the family of Prophet of Islam PBUH , todays tyrant India is doing the same to the country which is made in the name of Islam . Just like Hazrat Abbas e Alamdar fought his way to get water we need to be ready to fight our way with the Yazids of today and dont be afraid to sacrifice our lives for sake of our land and believes !

May Allah save Pakistan and bring victory to us !

Allow me to add members of MQM(KWSB) in No1 position. I found out to my horror that they have put gunny bags in the lines to stop water supplies to areas which do not agree to pay them monthly bhatta. Bilawal house is also a party to it, as each tanker submits gratification to this house for each trip made.

Having said that, we are faced with a clear and eminent danger. We can't do much about India as the dams have been made inside their territorial jurisdiction. World bank is not going to do anything as our own members of water treaty allowed India to proceed. PPP and PMLN governments did not react to it thus became abettors. Now what is the solution?

Solution is there, though not very simple. Dubai does not have any rivers flowing still they have made their land green. We can adopt same methodology. We have a coast line of almost 1000km of coastline. much of it still unexplored or utilized. We can use this barren area for desalination of sea water and pump it up the country. Though not a simple thing to do, but it is possible provided there is a will.
Humans have always dwell along water bodies. Today such cities have grown into metropolis and megalopolis. Lets take example of Lahore. If we consider its population to be 15 million and if each person uses 10 liters of water every day. Mind it uses and not consumed. It comes out to be 150 million liters of water everyday. This sewage is put in rivers untreated and the same water goes into fields and to taps as well. Many would not agree but fact is that this water, normally known as sewage water can be reused. Today technology can treat sewage water to the extent of potability. solid waste can be removed and this water can go through ROs for treatment, from there to the rivers. solid waste can be treated to produce organic manure, reducing dependence on chemical fertilizer. I know you are not liking it, but it can add to some clean water flowing in our rivers and canals.
Those areas known for having regular rains can have buildings designed to store rain water.

If we think there are a number of solutions besides dams, though dams can store large water, but when there is a crisis even a drop is important.

 

[Kuru]

pl explain how are we wasting water ?

last time i checked, we had seven barrages on the indus alone, 4 on chenab . ( besides numerous dams) .

pakistan is saving every last drop of water despite the fact that you chuthiyas are reducing flows on our rivers

There is a thing called Google. Try it sometime.

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Despite the lower per-capita availability, Pakistan continues to waste water at an alarming pace.

Water conveyance efficiency of Pakistan is 55% and irrigation efficiency is 41%. Almost 45 MAF of water is lost during canal and watercourse flow. Pakistan also wastes large quantities of water due to lack of water storage facilities. The country has storage capacity for merely 30 days against the minimum requirement of 120 days.

https://tribune.com.pk/story/1686531/2-water-politics-disastrous-recipe-pakistan/

Also read: Water mismanagement.

https://www.dawn.com/news/700417

P.S. Try not to be abusive. This will result in people taking you seriously. Good luck.

Dubai does not have any rivers flowing still they have made their land green.

The UAE may run out of ground water by 2030. Just FYI

https://gulfnews.com/news/uae/environment/uae-may-run-out-of-groundwater-by-2030-1.1475546

 

[blueazure]

let me break down what dawn says,

water from tarbela reservoir is diverted for power generation (as part of tarbela 4 extension). how does that imply water inefficiency ? how does that give you the right to pilferage our water ? please explain that genious ?

 

[HariPrasad]

W have done so many stupid things in last few years. One of them is ignoring basics. We undermined the importance of basic things such as Water , clean air, cleanliness, trees, rivers etc. It is a high time we start investing in it.

 

[Panther 57]

The UAE may run out of ground water by 2030. Just FYI

potable water is reducing all over the world. Each country is taking measures accordingly. UAE has a large plant in Fujerah which is supplying water to Abu Dhabi also.

Many US cities have scarcity of water. They are working on zero water wastage policy. In that they are reusing even sewerage water and liquid fertilizer for plantation. basin water going in flush tanks and sewerage water supplied to plantation. Houses are now being designed to support this policy. Even in Karachi one of the mosques is diverting, water used for ablution to plantation. We have to think out of the box to find solutions.

 

[maithil]

Dams are not silver bullet. Infact Huge Dams result in enormous environmental damage.

“The main reason for opposition worldwide are the huge numbers of people evicted from their lands and homes to make way for reservoirs.The livelihoods of many millions of people also suffer because of the downstream effects of dams: the loss of fisheries, contaminated water, decreased amounts of water and a reduction in the fertility of farmlands and forests due to the loss of natural fertilisers and irrigation in seasonal floods. Dams also spread waterborne diseases such as malaria, leishmaniasis and schistosomiasis. Opponents also believe that the benefits of dams have frequently been deliberately exaggerated and that the services they provide could be provided by other more efficient and sustainable means.”

https://www.internationalrivers.org/questions-and-answers-about-large-dams

 

[tarrar]

The only solution is make Skardu, Bhasha & Kala bagh dams, they are life line for Pakistan & Pakistan should concentrate on other source of producing energy as water is life for Pakistan & water should be stored.

 

[pak-marine]

they have put gunny bags in the lines to stop water supplies to areas which do not agree to pay them monthly bhatta

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