Growing Population: A Serious Threat To Natural Resources

Tallah Uzair
Pakistan is very rich in natural resources than other countries. It has Natural Gas, Fertile Lands, Rivers, Gasoline, etc. The current population of Pakistan is 225.2 million. It is expected that the population of Pakistan can cross 300 million by 2050 and this is an alarming situation for Pakistan. Pakistan had an uncertain ratio of growth during past decades and this uncertain growth rate will not decrease in future coming years rather it will increase.There are many reasons for population growth in Pakistan. Some of them are Strong belief in religion that Raziq is Allah, Lack of women empowerment, An Increasing Rate of Illiteracy among the masses, Lack of family planning, and Poor response of the population department,etc. These are the reasons causing uncertain population growth in Pakistan.There are many side effects of uncertain population growth in Pakistan, If there is a high population then it means there is an increased demand for food, water, housing, healthcare, transportation, and many more. The water crisis will become an issue in the upcoming years due to overpopulation. With water availability per person declining year by year, and demand for food production continuously increasing, Pakistan faces not only a water crisis but also serious concerns regarding its future food security.According to a U.N. report, By 2025, the demand for water in Pakistan is expected to reach 274 million acre feet (MAF) as compared to MAF supply of water. So, Pakistan will have huge stress on water resources in the future. Similarly, Gas reserves are decreasing by 10% annually. OGDCL reported that the current gas reserves will only last 15 years if the consumption remains at the current levels until 2030. After 15 years, we will severe shortage of gas due to overpopulation. China has reduced the birth rate and controlled the growth rate of the population in a decent way. There are many solutions to overcome this problem. It is time that new reforms may be introduced for family planning and awareness may be created among the masses regarding the disadvantages of Population. The government should strictly stop child marriage and early marriage, especially in rural areas where this problem is in prevalent form. After reducing the rate of birth, we can uplift the socio-economic conditions of the people of Pakistan. So, the government should consider overpopulation a serious issue and devise some plans to overcome this issue.