Water is truly one of Allah’s greatest blessings, a basic and essential element without which no life is possible. Not only the animal kingdom but plant kingdom too is wholly and solely dependent on the water. Right from human beings, animals, insects and plants the water is a fundamental need for all including the mother planet Earth.
Despite knowing all that this life giving substance happens to be the only thing in the world which is being mercilessly misused and interestingly Pakistan is no exception. The overuse and abuse of water is described as one of the main causes of water scarcity in our part of the world, where the amount of water in cubic meters used per unit of GDP is the world highest and no country’s economy is more water intensive than that of Pakistan.
According to report released by the United Nations Organisation (UNO) Pakistan is at the 7th position in the list of countries facing water crisis. Presently, Pakistan has a surface water of 153 MAF and underground water resources of only 24 MAF and there are shocking reports suggesting that Pakistan may face water shortage of 33 MAF during the year, 2025. According to a research study on water resources of Pakistan, approximately water having economic values of $70 billion is being thrown into sea every year due to non-construction of water reservoirs. Study of Pakistan Counsel of Research on the Water Resources of Pakistan (PCRWR) revealed that rapid depletion of ground water may soon worsen the water crisis in Pakistan’s major cities, causing a drought-like situation. The study suggested that such crisis needs to be taken on war footings; otherwise, a large section of Pakistan’s population, especially those living in big cities, will be facing severe shortage of water. There are so many other reasons behind the depleting water resources in Pakistan, however excessive pumping of underground water is said to be one of the reasons. The problem of water shortage in our country has gained momentum over the past several years, the underground water level has reached to red-zone (danger zone) but it is quite unfortunate that the authorities at the helm of affairs seem to be uninterested and unconcerned over this danger in waiting for the future. Even more appalling is the lack of will at the government level to construct big dams and water resources in the country. There are no arrangements to conserve the rain water and similarly there is no concept of water recycling or reusing treated wastewater for beneficial purposes such as agricultural and landscape irrigation, industrial processes, toilet flushing.
It seems that the government has no policy and planning to deal this problem that has assumed dangerous dimensions. It is time that the concerned authorities should wake up from deep slumber and take necessary measures to overcome this horrible water shortage in the country. Construction of small and big dams in different parts of the country can be instrumental in this regard, whereas modern irrigation techniques and controlled over pumping of underground water and over irrigation practices could be helpful in saving a lot of water from going waste.
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