essay on water crisis in pakistan

Essay on “Water Crisis in Pakistan and its Remedies” for CSS, PMS, Judiciary Examinations

• August 30, 2021
• Essay for CSS PMS and Judiciary Exam

This is an essay on “Water Crisis in Pakistan and its Remedies” for CSS, PMS, and Judiciary Examinations. Pakistan’s big arguably, biggest — problem is water scarcity. The country faces acute water scarcity by 2025 and will be the most water-stressed country in South Asia within two decades. Almost 30 million Pakistanis have no access to clean water. Find below the complete Essay on the water crisis in Pakistan and its remedies.

World Bank (WB) and Asian Development Bank (ADB) report

Causes of the water crisis

• No dams construction
• Dispute between the provinces
• Demands of Sindh
• Punjab’s role
• Lack of proper water management
• Climate change
• Mismanagement of resource

Indian propaganda since 1947

• Standstill Agreement
• Role of the president of the World Bank
• Indus Basin Treaty 1960
• Wullar Barrage (The Tulbal Navigation Lock)
• Kishanganga Project
• Baghlihar Dam

Sources of Water

• Indus River
• Closed basin Kharan desert
• Makran coastal basin
• Water reservoirs/ capacities
• Terbela dam reservoir
• Mangla dam reservoir
• Chashma barrage reservoir
• Utilization of water
• Power generation

Water and Agriculture

Impact on Economy

Recommendations for Water Crisis

• Kalabagh dam
• Thal reservoir
• Raised Mangla dam
• Gomalzam dam
• Water management
• Use of alternative sources of energy

Essay on “Water Crisis in Pakistan and its Remedies” for CSS, PMS, Judiciary Examinations

According to the World Bank (WB) and Asian Development Bank (ADB), Pakistan is one of the most “water-stressed” countries in the world; it is likely to face an acute water shortage over the next five years due to lack of water availability for irrigation, industry and human consumption. A WB report states that the water supply in Pakistan has fallen from 5,000 cubic meters per capita to 1,000 cubic meters in 2010, and is likely to further reduce to 800 cubic meters per capita by 2020. Contributory factors consist of an increase in population, climate change, lack of a solid vision to construct water reservoirs, and misplaced use of Jhelum and Chenab rivers by India under the Indus Water Treaty (IWT) of 1960 that has resulted in reduced flow of water to Pakistan.

The water crisis has two dimensions. First is the distribution of water among the four provinces, particularly between Punjab and Sindh. The second is between Pakistan and India arising because of utilizing water from the Chenab and Jhelum rivers. The first problem basically arises from the second one.

India got the right to fully utilize water from the three eastern rivers; Ravi, Bias, and Sutlej, while Pakistan was to utilize water from the three western rivers; Indus, Chenab, and Jhelum under the Indus Water Treaty (IWT). India was also permitted limited irrigation of 1,343 million acres (2.85 MAF) from western rivers. Water for Pakistan was not quantified. However, it is implied in the treaty that India is not to exceed the specified limit for water utilization. If India continues with its current strategy of building dams on the Chenab and Jhelum rivers, then there would be serious implications for Pakistan’s agriculture and national security. It would aggravate the already strained relationship between the two countries, which is due to the unresolved Kashmir issue.

A very strong perception exists in Pakistan that India in its quest to utilize water from Chenab and Jhelum rivers and is not fulfilling its obligations under the IWT. It wants to constrict the flow of water to Pakistan. This strategy has a hidden political agenda to create scarcity of irrigation water that would hurt Pakistan’s economy and agriculture sector in between 10-15 years. The national interests of both countries would be best served if India honored its comn1ittnents under the IWT. But, is India ready to address Pakistan’s concerns or wants to safeguard its own interests by violating the IWT that could lead to worsening of relations between the two countries?

The Water Crisis at the National Level Exists due to the following reasons:

•  In the past, the public leadership did not succeed to develop a consensus on the construction of huge water reservoirs, particularly the Kalabagh dam that could have addressed many of the power and water problems that are being faced today.
• Provinces are in dispute over their respective share of water under the IWT, with particular reference to utilizing water for Kharif and Rabi seasons through link canals managed by the Indus River System Authority (Irsa). Irsa has stopped satisfying Punjab, Sindh, and Balochistan provinces over the distribution of irrigation water for the current Rabi season because of a 34.0 percent shortage of water, primarily due to the construction of the Baglihar dam on Chenab. Water supply would be further constricted because of the planned construction of the Basrur multipower project, Siwalkot dam, and Pakot Dul dam on Chenab river by India. Unless resolved it would continue to be a recurring problem.
• The Sindh Assembly has demanded scrapping the Hydropower project on the Chashma Jhelum link canal, a key project for the Punjab government . There is a strong perception in Sindl1 that the project would constrict the flow of water to the province and hurt its agriculture as well.
• Punjab 1s accused of stealing 16,000 cusecs of water between Taunsa and Guddu, from 2nd to 4th Feb 2010. The Punjab government claims that system losses are to blame for the water that has disappeared.
• Because of an absence of proper water management essentially at the secondary canal level, water crisis, particularly at the lower parts of these canals, is very evident. Coupled with flood irrigation, either irrigation by flooding basins or using the old Punchoo system, the water crisis keeps on increasing its intensity day by day. IRSA has no telemetry system and we cannot decide to distribute water by going beyond letter sense and include the spirit of the Water Apportionment Accord of 1991, we do not see an end to this water crisis in Pakistan.

As far as the scarcity of water in Pakistan is concerned, apparently, it has also to do with:

1. Climatic changes

2. Negligence and mismanagement of water resources by successive governments in Pakistan

Global warming has led to the melting of the Himalayan glaciers and consequent depletion in the flow of water into the Indus River system. The trend is likely to continue with rising temperatures. It is not that only the agricultural sector, the backbone of Pakistan’s economy , is suffering; due to depleting water supply, there is reduced power generation from the hydroelectric plants, having a devastating impact on the country’s industries too. Pakistan has no control over nature. However, it can improve the management of water resources. Pakistan needs to address the following problems on an urgent basis:

• The silting of dams and barrages is a continuous process. Due to heavy sediments carried by the rivers, Tarbela, Mangla and Chasma Dams have lost nearly 25% of their capacity.
• An estimated 40% of the water that runs through canals is lost because of seepage. The reason is the canal beds and banks are unlined, poorly lined, or porous.
• Traditional and antiquated agricultural techniques lead to excessive loss of water.
• While water-intensive varieties of crops, like sugarcane and rice, are cultivated. Optimum crop rotation is imperative but is not done effectively.

On 2 June 2008, Pakistan’s National Economic Council met under the Chairmanship of Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani and approved the development strategy based on the Medium Term Development Framework 2005-10. The water sector part of the overall strategy concentrates on water augmentation, water conservation, and effective use of water. It calls for the development of additional medium and large-size reservoirs with priority.

The water storages to be completed, by 2016 include Akhori Dam, Basha-Diamer Dam, Kalabagh Dam, and Munda Dam. Simultaneously the ongoing projects such as raising the structures of Mangla Dam, Gomal Dam, Satpra Dam, Kurram Tangi Dam, and Sabakzai Dam are also to be the top priority. The Medium-Term Development Framework 2005-10 also envisages a number of other measures, including reclamation of land from waterlogging and salinity, improvement of watercourses and ground-water management, etc.

Last year, 20 different UN bodies had warned; “Water is linked to the crisis of climate change, energy and food supplies and prices, and troubled financial markets. Unless their links with water are addressed and water crises around the world are resolved, these other crises may intensify and local water crises may worsen, converging into a global water crisis and leading to political insecurity and conflict at various levels”.

In a recent report, the United Nations has estimated that Pakistan’s water supply has dropped from about 5,000 cubic meters per person in the 1950s to about 1,420 cubic meters. Any further drop would seriously jeopardize economic growth and would be a health hazard. Notwithstanding Indus Basin Treaty, The need for effective international cooperation among riparian countries is greater now than ever before. The demand for water in all countries is escalating and increasingly the harmful effects of activities in upstream countries are being observed. Over a third of the 200 international river basins, are not covered, by an international agreement; only some 30, including Pakistan and India, have co-operative institutional arrangements.

Clearly, efforts are needed to formulate and reach an agreement on an international “code of conduct” or convention in the utilization of shared water basins so that the water needs of some countries are not undermined by irresponsible utilization of water resources by others. Improved international co-operation is also necessary regarding the transfer of knowledge and technology in the water resources field. The United Nations Convention on the Law of the Non-Navigational Uses of International Watercourses, 1998, sets the standard for all agreements involving the shared use of trans boundary water, resources.

It specifically establishes the dual criteria of “equitable and reasonable utilization”‘ of the water resources and the need to “exchange data and consult on the possible effects of planned measures on the condition” of the water resource. The U.N. Convention provides the overall framework for Transboundary water sharing.

The partition of the South Asian Subcontinent on 14 August 1947 into the dominions of India and Pakistan gave birth to a host of problems, including that of the sharing of waters of the mighty Indus River System. The issue was of concern to Pakistan because the headworks of the rivers that irrigated Pakistan’s Punjab province mostly went to the Indian side. On 30 December 1947, Pakistan and India concluded a ‘Standstill Agreement’ for a three-month period under which Pakistan continued to receive water supply from the headworks of Madhopur on River Ravi and Ferozepur on River Sutlej, the two tributaries of River Indus. As the interim arrangement ended on 31 March 1948, the next day the Government of Indian Punjab stopped the supply of water to Pakistan from the Madhopur headwork, affecting, according to one estimate, 5.5% of Pakistan’s irrigated area.

Pakistan raised the issue at the Inter-Dominion Conference held on 3-4 May 1948. India dismissed Pakistan’s claim over water, from the headworks on its side as a matter of right but agreed to release water as a provisional arrangement. It was thus abundantly clear that slowly and gradually the quantity of water would be reduced. In 1951, David Lilienthal, who had formerly served as Chairman of the Tennessee Valley Authority and as Chairman of the US Atomic Energy Commission, undertook a research tour of Pakistan and India for writing a series of articles. In one of his articles, he opined that it would be very beneficial for the region if the two countries cooperated to jointly develop and operate the Indus Basin river system. He further suggested that the World Bank might play its role in bringing India and Pakistan to agree on some plan to develop the Indus river system for mutual benefit.

President of the World Bank, Eugene Black, picked up the idea and offered his good offices to resolve the issue of water sharing between India and Pakistan. The two neighbors welcomed the initiative and after tough bargaining during the protracted negotiations that spread, over nine years arrived at the contours of the agreement. Broad parameters thus settled the work of drafting began. Finally, m September 1960, President of Pakistan Field Marshall Mohammad Ayub Khan and Prime Minister of India Jawaharlal Nehru signed the Indus Water Treaty in Karachi.

Following are the provisions of the Indus Basin Treaty 1960

• Pakistan surrendered three eastern rivers, Ravi, Sutlej, and Beas to India with some minor rights to Pakistan.
• Largely three western rivers namely Indus, Jhelum, and Chenab remained with Pakistan.
• India was allowed to use water from the western rivers for irrigation of 642,000 acres of land that were already being irrigated from these rivers along with an entitlement to further irrigate 701,000 acres for crops.
• India was also given specified entitlement for ‘other’ storage, including, power and flood storage i.e., storage for non-consumptive purposes.
• Pakistan was to meet the requirements of its eastern river canals from the western rivers by constructing replacement works.
• Both parties are bound to. regularly exchange flow data of rivers, canals, and streams.
• A Permanent Indus Water Commission, with one Commissioner from each side, was to be set up to resolve issues.
• The procedures were set out for settlement of ‘questions’ ‘differences’ and ‘disputes’, bilaterally and through neutral experts and International Court of Arbitration as the case might be.

Since Pakistan required considerable time to build the necessary infrastructure to divert water from western rivers to eastern rivers and their canals on its side, India was to allow the ‘historic withdrawals’ on the part of Pakistan during the transitory period. According to the Treaty, two dams (Mangla on River Jhelum and Tarbela on River Indus) were to be built It also envisaged five barrages Maraia and Qadirabad on River Chenab, Sidhnai on River Ravi, Rasul on River Jhelum, Chashma on River Indus, and Mailsi on River Sutlej. Besides, one siphon and seven link canals (Rasul-Qadirabad on Rivers Jhelum-Chenab, Qadirabad-Balloki on Rivers Chenab-Ravi, Balloki-Suleimanki II and Sidhnai-Mailsi on Rivers Ravi-Sutlej, Chashma-Jhelum on Rivers Indus-Jhelum and Trimmu-Sidhnai on Rivers Indus-Ravi), to be constructed in Pakistan.

To meet the financial cost, India was to pay a fixed amount of US $ 62.060 million over a period of ten years. An international consortium pledged the US $ 900 million. The World Bank was to administer the Indus Basin, Development Fund. The Indus Basin Project was completed despite all hurdles those included opposition and reservations from many quarters in Pakistan who felt that Pakistan’s rights as a lower riparian state had been compromised. This amounted to a successful resolution of a major dispute over the world’s largest, contiguous irrigation system with a command area of about 20 million hectares.

Although the Indus Water Treaty has been a remarkable success story, lately some projects are undertaken by India in the Occupied territory of Jammu and Kashmir from where the western rivers flow into Pakistan have become major irritants and raised serious concerns in Pakistan:

India has embarked upon the construction of a huge network of water storage facilities, the national river linking project at an estimated cost of $120 bn likely to be completed by 2016. It includes the construction of the Basrur multi-power project, Siwalkot dam, and Pakot Dul dam on Chenab, in addition to the already constructed Baglihar dam. In 1985, India started construction of a barrage known as ‘Wullar Barrage (The Tulbal Navigation Lock)’ some 439 feet long and with a lock at the mouth of Wullar Lake, the largest freshwater Lake in Indian occupied, disputed, and held territory.

Purportedly but not so innocently, the stated purpose of the barrage was to make possible navigation in a 22 km stretch between the towns of Sopore and Baramula, during the lean winter season by regulating the flow of the River Jhelum. Pakistan raised objections to this project and the construction work halted in 1987. Pakistan contends that India cannot store water in excess of 0.01 MAF as ‘incidental storage’ on River Jhelum. Pakistan also apprehends that the Wullar Barrage may cause damage to its own project of linking Jhelum and Chenab with the Upper Bari Doab Canal. One important concern of Pakistan, which is extraneous to the Indus Water Treaty but squarely a security issue, is that in case of war between the two countries, India would take advantage of its ability to control the flow of water and make the crossing of the river easy or difficult according to strategic and tactical military requirement.

India, as usual, but erroneously contends that the Wullar Barrage would regulate the flow of water into Jhelum and control the floods. It would not reduce the overall quantum of water flow rather increase it during the lean winter season. All fair weather pretension and an obvious ruse, to get away with an extremely hurtful project to Pakistan. The project’s impact, India asserts, would be beneficial to Mangla Dam in power generation and to Pakistan’s triple canal system due to the regulated flow of water. The matter remains unresolved.

Outrageously on the Kishanganga Project, the Indians hawk on the premise that it will ostensibly bring water from River Kishanganga to Wullar Lake, where a hydroelectric power station is proposed. The project envisages the construction of a channel and a tunnel for this purpose. Simultaneously to build a dam, near the place where River Kishanganga crosses the Line of Control to enter Pakistan-administered Kashmir, where it is known as Neelum.

Here Pakistan plans to construct a 969 MW-capacity Neelum-Jhelum Power Plant with Chinese assistance. The Pakistani project is to going to be completed in 2017, due to a delay in construction work. Pakistan is genuinely concerned and fears that the Kishanganga Project would lead to a shortfall of water flow into Neelum, reducing its power generation by an estimated 9%. The Indus Water Treaty does not bar any party from storing water for power generation as per entitlement.

However, there is the principle of prior appropriation enshrined in the Treaty. India intends to complete the Kishanganga Project by 2016 to avail the opportunity of diverting K.ishanganga’a water to Wullar Lake before Pakistan is able to invoke the provision of prior appropriation. India also claims that Pakistan need not worry because the water diverted by the l<ishanganga Project would reach Pakistan through River Jhelum, no matter Neelum-Jhelum project suffers.

In 1999, India began construction work of 470-feet high, 317 meters wide Baghlihar Dam, also known as Baghlihar Hydroelectric Power Project, oh River Chenab in Doda District of Indian occupied Kashmir. Although India called it a run-of-the-river project, the dam was to have a ‘pond age’ of 15 million cubics! Deters with submerged gated spillways.

Pakistan raised objection to the project design on the ground that the submerged gate ‘spillways would enable India to increase the storage capacity of the reservoir and, if India desired, to halt the supply of water to Pakistan for more than three weeks during the winter season. Pakistan fears that it would lose between 7000 to 8000 cusecs of water per day for Rabi crops. Pakistan also sensed the danger of inundation of the area above Maraia Head Works, if India released water simultaneously from Dulhasti, Baghlihar, and Sala! Darns into River Chenab. Pakistan viewed the Baghlihar Project as another security risk, in times of tension or war, as India would be able to control the flow of water facilitating or hampering the movement of Indian/Pakistani troops according to its requirement.

After the Indus Water Commission failed to resolve the Baghlihar Dam issue, the matter was referred to the World Bank which acknowledged that the issue amounted to a ‘difference’ and appointed Professor Raymond Lafitte, an engineer from Switzerland, as the neutral expert to decide the matter. On 12 February 2007, Lafitte gave his verdict directing India to reduce the capacity of pond age by 13.5% and the height of the Dams’ structure by 1.5 meters. He also called for raising power intake tunnels by 3 meters to reduce flow-control capability. Pakistan had reservations about the verdict but both India and Pakistan agreed to abide by it. The matter, it appears, stands closed.

It is heartening to see that during its recent visit to Pakistan to discuss Indus Water issues, the Indian delegation conceded that all “water disputes must be resolved within an agreed timeframe.” Pakistan’s Indus Commissioner Syed Jamaal Ali Shah told the Indian delegation that a reduction in supplies was jeopardizing the water transfer operation to the eastern part of Pakistan. He also conveyed the message that Pakistan wanted India to take necessary steps if deforestation and environmental impact affected the river flow on its side.

Now dams will be Discussed in detail.

World’s largest earth and rock-filled dam were built at Terbela on river Indus in 1976 with a gross capacity of 11.62 maf and a live storage capacity of 9.68 maf. With the passage of time, due to silting, 24.6% of the storage has been lost and now it has a live storage of 7.295 maf.

Mangla reservoir is the second major storage of Pakistan. It was built in 1967 on river Jhelum with a gross capacity of 5.882 maf and live storage of 5.41 maf. Again due to siltation it has lost 13.2% of its storage and presently can store 4.636 MAF of water.

Chashma barrage is situated on river Indus and was built in 1972 with a gross storage of0.870 maf and live storage of O.717 maf. It has also reduced its storage capacity by 39.3% and is left with a storage capacity of0.435 maf.

In Pakistan, we utilize the water available to us for different purposes. The basic utilization is for irrigation and then used for power generation, drinking, and also provided to some Industries.

Whereas impact on the economy is concerned, according to the estimates of the federal government, the agriculture sector would suffer a loss of about Rs. 90 billion because of drought. Since agriculture has remained a major source of shouldering the already crippled economy , it has a vital role to play particularly in terms of food security and employment of the ever-burgeoning population of the country. It contributes around 35 % to the GNP and employs about 44% of the labor force. It also contributes 65% of our export earnings. The adverse effects of water shortage on agriculture would have a spiraling effect on the prevailing level of poverty.

•  Less water means less agricultural yields and to fulfill the food requirements of the nation, we will be dependent on other countries.
• Raising livestock is the main source of livelihood in rural areas. It is also an important economic activity, which contributes 9.7% of GDP, which will be affected due to a shortage of water.
• Orchards of Pakistan bring home a healthy amount of foreign exchange, which can be affected due to water shortage.
• Due to less production of main crops, which are wheat, cotton, sugar cane, and rice, the Industries related to them will suffer adversely.
• Then due to drought and more dependency on groundwater for irrigation, the water table will go down, and this will cause water constraints to the population.
• Less agricultural outputs will compel people to head towards urban areas for jobs, which will increase unemployment further.
• The distribution of water is controlled from the center by IRSA (Indus river system authority) as per the 1991 agreement between the provinces. Now the shortage of water will cause disputes between the provinces, which may cause harm to the national integrity.

So for overcoming the water crisis, following steps are recommended:

The national water strategy must be based upon two essential elements covering

1. Water developments

2. Water management

In water development, the following dams should start immediately;-

Bhasha dam would be located 200 miles upstream of Terbela on river Indus. its gross storage capacity would be 7.3 maf and live storage 5.7 maf. Its power generation capacity would be 3360 mw.

Kalabagh dam site is located 132 miles downstream of Terbela. Its gross storage would be 6.1 maf. It would have a power generation of 3600 mw.

That reservoir would be located on the right bank of Chashma – Jhelum link canal, along the western bank of river Jhelum. Its reservoir would have a gross capacity of 2.3 maf.

In this, the present Mangla dam would be further raised by 40 ft and thus increasing its gross capacity to 9.5 maf. In addition, its power generation capacity would be increased by 15%.

Mirani dam is located on Dasht River about 48 km of Turbat town in Mekran division. Its main objective is to provide water for irrigation. Its gross storage is 0.30 maf.

Gomalzam dam is located at Khajori Kach on Gomal River in South Waziristan, about 75 miles from Dera Ismail Khan. Its main objective will be to irrigate 132000 acres of land, power generation of 17.4 mw, and flood control.

From these projects, we shall be able to store an additional 20maf of water. Managing water resources is the need of time, and we in Pakistan are already short of water, mnst chalk out a strategy. Following are recommended in this regard:-

Presently the losses occur due to seepage, infiltration, and leakages, etc. seepage results in waterlogging, and these losses can be reduced or eliminated by lining the canals.

In addition, people should be educated to conserve water by cooperation”: Furthermore government should make laws on water conservation, like many western countries.

The second-largest contribution to the total water available comes from groundwater sources. This source has been exploited and very well used by public and private tube wells. It can still provide over nine maf of water. This source can be exploited and judiciously used for irrigation purposes. However in some areas, groundwater is rapidly depleting due to excessive pumpage, authorities should take control in such areas to save them from depleting.

Efforts would be made to convert the present rotation-based irrigation system to a demand-oriented system. The modem irrigation techniques, that is trickling, sprinkling, etc, have the potential to improve water distribution and its utilization.

Authorities should take appropriate steps to curb the illegal extraction of water and ensure its equitable distribution.

Presently irrigation department has failed to stop the illegal theft and extraction; thus irrigation distribution system needs to be privatized through·water user associations.

In addition, water, nowadays is supplied to farmers at a very negligible cost and that is why they do not treat water as a precious resource; therefore there is a need to increase the water prices to make irrigators realize the importance of this asset.

Farmer’s organizations, water user associations, and the private sector must be involved in the construction, operation, and maintenance of i.e irrigation system. Such associations are conceived as a mechanism for creating a cooperative framework for the improvement of watercourses.

The problems faced by the water sector in the country are many, acute and serious and it is also known that we can generate about 83 maf of more water. Therefore, building more reservoirs and an effective management strategy are the needs of the time. Also, implementation of the recommendations will enable the country to ·meet the challenges, and achieve the objectives of integrated, efficient, environmentally and financially sustainable development and management of limited water resources. At the same time, it will enable us to utilize every drop of our water for our bright future.

You may also like these:

• View other Relevant Essay Topics
• CSS Guide for Beginners for 2022
• PMS Guide: Syllabus, Paper Pattern Compulsory & Optional Subjects
• CSS Past Paper Subject Wise 
• LLB Past Papers

I am interested in writing content for educational purpose.

Most relevant ▼

• Essay on “Innovations are Never-ending Headways” for CSS, PMS
• Essay on “Single National Curriculum Pave the Way for the Desired Ideological Integration in Pakistan Society” for CSS, PMS
• Essay on “Single National Curriculum Paving the Way for the desired ideological integration in Pakistan Society” for CSS, PMS
• Essay on “The cost of inaction is greater than the cost of action” for CSS, PMS
• Essay on “Inflation – A Result of Poor Economic Policies or a Part of Global Economic Woes” for CSS, PMS
• Essay on “Democracy without Justice is Tyranny” for CSS, PMS
• Essay on “Man is Born Free but Everywhere he is in Chains” for CSS, PMS
• Essay on “Power Corrupts: Absolute Power Corrupts Absolutely” for CSS and PMS
• Essay on the “Role of Social Media in the Modern World” for CSS and PMS
• Essay on “Terrorism and its Socioeconomic Implications” for CSS, and PMS

• Food & Ecosystems
• Climate Change & Resilience
• Growth & Inclusion
• Where We Work
• Publications
• Data & Tools
• Annual reports
• Our Funders

The Nation: Dealing with Pakistan’s growing water insecurity

Water insecurity is already imposing significant social, environmental, and economic development challenges for pakistan..

Water insecurity is already imposing significant social, environmental, and economic development challenges for Pakistan. In recent years, climate-induced disasters (floods and droughts) have highlighted the urgency to introduce climate-resilient solutions for improved water governance at all levels. In 1980, Pakistan had a relatively abundant supply of water. In 2000, Pakistan had become water-stressed and by 2035, Pakistan is predicted to have become water scarce. In addition, COVID-19 has underscored the importance of strengthening the resilience of potable water supply systems. Thus, Pakistan’s increasing water scarcity and vulnerability to climate change highlights the urgent need to manage climate-related risks and to improve water use at the national and local levels. Presently, groundwater provides over 90% of drinking water supplies to all major cities, including Rawalpindi and Islamabad Capital Territory, often referred to as the “twin cities.”

Read the full article on https://nation.com.pk

• moshin hafeez

Related Articles

Ap news: pakistan fatal flooding has hallmarks of warming, ptv: global response to floods in pakistan – international assistance, bloomberg: melting himalayan glaciers are making pakistan’s floods worse.

• Sign up for News
• Whistleblower Hotline

Pakistan: 10 million deprived of safe drinking water in flood-affected areas

Facebook Twitter Print Email

Six months after catastrophic floods struck Pakistan, more than 10 million people, including children, still lack access to safe drinking water, the UN Children’s Fund ( UNICEF ) said on Tuesday.

The crisis has left families in the flood-affected areas with no choice but to use potentially contaminated water.

This #WorldWaterDay, @ UNICEF urges donors and partners to urgently allocate more resources to help provide flood-affected children and families with access to safe drinking water and toilets. This is not a privilege. It's their basic right. https://t.co/A81vHoPcb1 UNICEF Pakistan UNICEF_Pakistan March 21, 2023

“Safe drinking water is not a privilege, it is a basic human right ”, said UNICEF Representative in Pakistan, Abdullah Fadil. “Yet, every day, millions of girls and boys in Pakistan are fighting a losing battle against preventable waterborne diseases and the consequential malnutrition.”

‘Added risk’ for girls and women

UNICEF warns that the lack of access to safe drinking water and toilets, as well as the presence of stagnant water, are contributing to “widespread” outbreaks of waterborne diseases such as cholera, diarrhoea, dengue, and malaria .

According to the UN Children’s Fund, beyond being a health hazard, the lack of proper toilets is “ disproportionally affecting children, adolescent girls and women who are at added risk of shame and harm when defecating outdoors .”

Rising malnutrition

Unsafe water and poor sanitation are also “key underlying causes” of malnutrition . UNICEF highlights that a third of all child deaths globally are attributable to malnutrition, while half of all undernutrition cases are linked to infections caused by a lack of access to safe water, adequate sanitation and good hygiene.

In Pakistan’s flood-affected areas, more than 1.5 million boys and girls are already severely malnourished , and UNICEF expects these numbers to rise. Malnutrition is associated with half of all child deaths in the country.

Humanitarian needs

Last year’s unprecedented flooding, triggered by severe monsoon rains, submerged a third of Pakistan’s land mass.

According to the UN Office in the country , more than 33 million people were affected overall, or one in seven Pakistanis, and eight million were displaced, causing humanitarian needs to surge.

The UN reported on Tuesday that as of 15 March, humanitarians had reached more than seven million flood-affected Pakistanis with food and other essential services. UNICEF and partners have so far provided safe drinking water to nearly 1.2 million children and families, and supported the rehabilitation of water supply facilities benefitting over 450,000 people .

Speaking at an international conference dedicated to the emergency back in January this year, UN Secretary-General António Guterres stressed that “rebuilding Pakistan in a resilient way” will require “supporting women and children, who are up to 14 times more likely than men to die during disasters, and face the brunt of upheaval and loss in humanitarian crises”.   

Call for funding

Ahead of Wednesday’s World Water Day , UNICEF has called for resources to urgently restore access to safe drinking water and toilets in the flood-affected areas. Investment is also needed in climate-resilient water supply facilities, such as those powered by solar energy.

UNICEF’s $173.5 million appeal for this crisis remains less than 50 per cent funded.

An official website of the United States government

The .gov means it’s official. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

The site is secure. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

• Publications
• Account settings

Preview improvements coming to the PMC website in October 2024. Learn More or Try it out now .

• Advanced Search
• Journal List
• J Environ Public Health
• v.2022; 2022

Climate Change and Water Crises in Pakistan: Implications on Water Quality and Health Risks

Waseem ishaque.

1 Director Area Study Centre (China), NUML, Islamabad, Pakistan

Rida Tanvir

2 Department of International Relations, NUML, Islamabad, Pakistan

Mudassir Mukhtar

3 HoD Media and Communication Studies, NUML, Islamabad, Pakistan

Associated Data

The data used to support the findings of this study are included within this article.

Pakistan is vulnerable and most affected by adverse impacts of climate change. The study examines the impact of climate change on Pakistan during the year 2022, resulting into unprecedented heatwave and drought in summers followed by the abnormal rains and floods during monsoon season. Agriculture is the backbone of Pakistan's economy, which has been devastated by both drought and floods. While the flood water is gradually receding, the stagnant contaminated water is causing several health risks for the inhabitants. This research argues that water security is the emerging national security challenge for Pakistan. The article investigates the status of water availability vis-a-vis the burgeoning population, agriculture, and other uses of water. Impact of abnormal melting of glaciers, nonavailability of dams for storage of rainwater, and lack of smart means for agriculture water have been examined to empirically validate the arguments.

1. Introduction

Climate change has become international buzzword today and it is “no longer an unfamiliar term, which can be comprehended through personal knowledge, experience, and interactions” [ 1 ]. The phenomenon of climate change is largely attributed to human induced actions, more specifically in terms of emissions of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere [ 2 ]. Therefore, the phenomena of climate change are producing many threats on the Earth surface, ranging from droughts, heavy precipitation, and heatwaves to unprecedented tropical cyclones [ 3 ]. All these disasters have varying degree of impact over different geographical zones, resulting into environmental, health, economic, and social impact. There is no denying the fact that the world we live in today is far more vulnerable and affected by the negative impacts of climate change. However, the greatest health impact is being witnessed in the countries which have least share in greenhouse emissions [ 4 ]. There is also strong realization to attend to climate emergency, which is causing water security issues around the globe, and threatens food security, agricultural yield, food supply, and prices with serious implications on sustainable development, poverty, and inequality. The UNICEF warns about the availability and use of water in a nicely crafted statement that “the world needs to get water smart, and everyone has to realize that they have a role to play, and we cannot afford to wait” [ 5 ]. The “climate change is happening right now, and its effects are being felt around the world” [ 6 ].

Pakistan is vulnerable to the negative consequences of climate change, therefore, susceptible to unusual weather patterns, which can create strategic challenges [ 7 ]. The rising temperatures are causing rapid melting of glaciers in northern areas and unusual rains as seen in monsoon this year have created mayhem through floods, unprecedented in Pakistan's history in last 30 years. United Nations Secretary General Antonio Guterres stated that Pakistan is facing “the unrelenting effects of epochal levels of rains and flooding” [ 8 ]. The men and material losses are enormous and therefore, Pakistan is likely to face water crisis, food shortages, and serious implications for human security. Reacting to the recent flood situation in Pakistan, the Finance Minister Mr Miftah Ismail stated that “Pakistan is dealing with the worst effects of the climate change, which has caused over US$ 30 billion loss to Pakistan's economy and displacing 33 million people” [ 9 ]. This study explores the impacts of climate change on the availability, usage, and storage of water in Pakistan. The drought and floods of year 2022 have been taken as case study for analyzing the impacts of climate change across Pakistan by sampling both rural and urban areas. Figure 1 shows the sectoral usage of available water in Pakistan.

Sectoral distribution of water consumption in Pakistan.

2. Materials and Methods

The year 2022 is unprecedented in Pakistan's history of last three decades. The summers produced extreme temperatures which resulted in unusual melting of glaciers in northern areas of Pakistan resulting in partial collapse of bridge near Hassanabad in Hunza [ 10 ] as shown in Figure 2 .

Partial collapse of Hassanabad bridge.

Later, the exceptional monsoon rains produced extraordinary floods across the country, with huge men and material losses. The evolving trends indicate that Pakistan is most vulnerable to climate change. The floods have devastated the agriculture, livestock, and infrastructure. The loss to national economy is estimated at US$ 30 billion [ 11 ]. The survey and data analyses of past two and half decades reveal that Pakistan confronted from absolute dry and drought situations to devastating floods to the extent of witnessing both phenomenon in one calendar year as happening in the ongoing year 2022. The study has been completed by considering drought and floods data from primary and secondary sources with particular focus on this year. The field visits to rural and urban areas of Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KPK), and Baluchistan were conducted for obtaining the first-hand information and data on the impacts of flood situation. The relevant officials in the ministry of climate change and meteorological offices were also interviewed and their views have been incorporated in the study for developing a comprehensive picture, conducting rationale analyses, and arriving at workable findings. The study is very contemporary and relevant and expected to provide valuable policy guidelines to relevant government ministries in Pakistan as they are grappling with the ongoing flood situation and rehabilitation process. Figure 3 highlights the vulnerability of Pakistan to climate change risks in the global context, which has been explored further in the study to empirically prove the vulnerabilities and risks.

Climate risk indexing and Pakistan's vulnerability [ 12 ].

3. Findings

3.1. deciphering the impact of climate change on pakistan.

Climate remains the most debated yet least addressed issue for decades. World leaders have often joined heads to tackle this global phenomenon but with little to no success. From motivational speeches to documentaries and movies on the effects of climate change on the Earth has been narrated time and again but to no avail [ 13 ]. The developed countries remain aloof of devastating effects of greenhouse gas emission is causing to the ozone layer. The growing depletion of the ozone layer is resulting in increased Ultraviolet (UV) radiations level on the surface of Earth, which has detrimental impact on human health resulting in cancer and weak immune system [ 14 ]. These UV radiations have devastating effect on the agriculture sector as well due to low yield of the crops [ 15 ]. Scientists have been talking about the infamous “black hole” in the Antarctic region for years. But the recent research in the year 2022 has discovered a hole in the Tropics (Tropics are the regions of the Earth near the equator) which is seven times bigger than the Antarctic region [ 16 ]. The more alarming situation is that, despite all this, the industrialized countries are less concerned by the deteriorating ozone and increase in global warming. Various protocols and initiatives like Kyoto Protocol, Copenhagen accord, and Paris accord had been initiated by the United Nations Framework on Climate Change (UNFCCC). Due to the Sovereign status of the global order, these agreements were not a binding, therefore, the industrial powers contributing the most carbon dioxide and greenhouse gases to the environment withdrew from these accords as it did not serve their economic interests. The major global contributors of the CO 2 emissions are given in Figure 4 :

10 most polluted countries as of 2020 [ 17 ].

Figure 4 gives an account for the 10 most polluted countries in the world as of 2020. However, China remains leading in that aspect in the year 2022 as well. United States remain on second number with 4.4 billion tons of CO 2 emissions, while India is third producing 2.3 billion tons of CO 2 .

According to Figure 5 , the above countries might not appear as the top 10 global CO 2 contributors, but they fall in the top 10 per capita CO 2 contributors, due to their large-scale reliance on oil and small number of populations. United Nations Secretary General Mr Antonio Gutters paid an official visit to Pakistan on 9-10 September 2002 to show solidarity to flood victims and assess the devastations through field visits and official briefings. He stated that the “nature has attacked Pakistan, which contributes less than 1% of global emissions” [ 19 ] while facing the consequences of developed countries emissions and pollution of climate. He further added that “it was outrageous that action to reduce greenhouse gas emissions was being put on the back burner, today it is Pakistan and tomorrow, it could be your country” [ 20 ], pointing toward industrialized countries. The Global Climate Index (GCI) 2021 has also vindicated Pakistan's vulnerabilities to climate risks as shown in Table 1 below, where Pakistan stands number 8 [ 21 ] in the vulnerability Index. The analysis presented highlights the severe impacts of climate change on Pakistan ranging from extreme heat and drought to dreadful floods. [ 22 ].

10 most polluting countries per capita 2022 [ 18 ].

Global climate index 2021 [ 22 ].

3.2. Examination of Water Calamities in Pakistan

Water is an essential need for ecosystem and human life. In recent times, it has been a growing concern that “precious blue” is becoming inadequate resource for future of human survival [ 23 ]. The amount of fresh water has remained constant on Earth surface since last 100 years; however, the access to water resources is unbalanced [ 24 ] with the rapid population growth, urbanization, and deforestation. Similarly, other issues, such as technological waste, growing industrialization, global warming, and climate change, all are among the key contributing factors for extreme water scarcity [ 25 ]. Although the water scarcity has emerged as a global challenge today, it has severely hit the underdeveloped countries like Pakistan with serious implications on all sectors. Pakistan stands among top 10 severely “high water risk countries” with agriculture as most affected sector [ 26 ]. Moreover, roughly 80% of the population is facing grave shortage of water during at least 1 month in a year which is very alarming. Under scarce surface water, ground water resources (last resort to water supply) are being over utilized. If appropriate measures are not initiated in time with “whole of nation” and “whole of government” approach, the situation would get worse in time to come and the entire country will face the severe crises of water scarcity by 2025, by most projections “Pakistan could run dry” [ 27 ]. The evolving situation has serious implications on the national security of Pakistan, as it will create challenges for sustainable agriculture production which contributes around 23% of Pakistan's Gross Domestic Product (GDP) and creates job opportunities for around 42% of population [ 28 ]. According to the report published by Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE), Pakistan ranks 14th out of 17 very high-risk countries affected by water scarcity, as more than 1/3rd of available water is wasted due to bad management [ 29 ]. Since 1962, after the formalization of Indus Water Treaty (IWT) with India, per inhabitant water availability has plummeted from 5229 cubic meters to about 1187 in 2017, which is continuously on the downward slide [ 30 ]. The latest UN report on Pakistan's growing population indicates that by 2050, the population is likely to exceed 366 million [ 31 ], which will compound the water demand, which is predicted to reach 274-million-acre feet (MAF) by 2025 against available water supply of 191 MAF. This demand and supply gap would continue to grow year on year basis due to growing population and bad water management [ 32 ]. Figure 6 shows graphical representation of expected water situation in Pakistan by 2025 viz-a-viz the population [ 33 ].

Water availability in Pakistan by 2025 taken from Dr Muhammad Ashraf's research report.

3.3. Analysis on Flood Devastations in Pakistan in Year 2022

Most of Pakistan's economy is dependent on the agricultural sector; however, the industrial sector also contributes a great deal to the economic growth of Pakistan. The growing population is directly impacting the environment as the number of vehicles on roads and the number of industries to accommodate these individuals will also increase. The population of Pakistan at the time of independence was 32.5 million; however, as per the 2021 census, the population has increased to 225 million. Although, Pakistan remains significantly low on the global CO 2 emissions list, yet the effects of global warming have reached Pakistan in a sweeping manner [ 34 ]. The issue that industrialized countries failed to realize that the environment does not belong to a single country and when one country damages the ozone layer, the entire world would pay the price for that. The year 2022 was one such year for Pakistan when the effects of climate change brought heavy rainfalls in Pakistan resulting in major loss of lives, infrastructural damage, and massive economic losses to the tune of US$ 30 billion [ 35 ]. The NASA issued satellite imagery on the flood situation in Pakistan, which is given in Figure 7 .

NASA satellite imagery of floods in Pakistan, September 01, 2022.

Torrential rainfall and flooding have wreaked havoc across Pakistan killing over 1600 people including children and destroying infrastructure. According to statement given by Sherry Rehman Minister for Climate Change: “One third of the country is literally under water, a catastrophe of unknown precedent” The data are given in Table 2 and Figure 8 . Therefore, the devastating floods caused by unprecedented impact of climate change have hit Pakistan the most this year seriously impacting all the sectors of economy and society [ 36 ].

Flood devastation in Swat (KPK) and Baluchistan.

Province wise loss suffered because of heavy rain fall [ 36 ].

3.4. Analysis on Drinking Water Quality in Pakistan

The quality of available drinking water in Pakistan is in a dreadful state. Both surface and subsurface water sources are contaminated and disease prone [ 37 ] in major cities as well as rural areas. In the overall context, per capita the availability of water is decreasing precipitously in Pakistan, and the country is ranked as “water stressed” country and fast heading toward “water scarce” country in coming few years [ 38 ]. The evolving situation also creates challenges for availability of water for agricultural production, and daily usage requirements, therefore intensifying the human security issues in Pakistan [ 39 ]. Water pollution is the most common word today in Pakistan, which can be ascribed to numerous aspects affecting quality of available water [ 40 ]. The common causes are an upsurge in the atmospheric temperatures, with an inbuilt tendency to take heat to the threshold of drinking water, microbes, organic chemicals, nutrients, and heavy metals [ 41 ] . The research findings have discovered other factors as well affecting water quality, which include surface debris, sporadic water supply, improper discharge of water supply, proximity of sewage water to drinking water lines, industrial waste which has now become very common in almost all major cities in Pakistan, discharge of untreated sewage water and highly incompetent technical workers and service providers on water disposal projects [ 42 ]. The pollution of water due to geological and natural factors depends on the presence of different chemicals and their concentration in the geological formations in selected areas, while anthropogenic pollution is caused by extensive use of herbicides and pesticides, coal mining, oil refining, careless disposal of garbage, and septic tanks [ 43 ]. Because of such developments, fresh drinking water is available to hardly 20% of population, while 80% population is content with drinking of contaminated water [ 44 ]. The recent floods have further aggravated the situation as vast swaths of land in Pakistan is still under water, which is now contaminated causing several health issues. The ongoing situation has also impurified subsurface drinking water due to seepage of contaminated flood water deep in Earth, and government's inability for effective disposal of sewage water.

3.5. Water Security

Food and energy security is directly influenced by water security for agrarian society like Pakistan, which contributes more than 23% in national GDP. Agriculture is the backbone of Pakistan as it employs more than 40 million population and guarantor of breadbasket of the country. Therefore, “the loss of major river systems in the past had a domino effect on the thriving civilizations, which became extinct one after the other” [ 45 ]. Pakistan is transitioning from water strained country with declining “per capita fresh drinking water, which is less than 1800 cubic meters per year (m 3 /y) to water scarce country (per capita less than 1000 m 3 /y)” projected by 2035 [ 46 ]. Similarly, river water also receding to 800 m 3 /y is expected in 2026 due to growing population. Therefore, “water security is emerging threat for Pakistan” [ 47 ]. Pakistan is a lower riparian state reliant on the nature and other countries for river's water. India has constructed more than fifty big and small dams on the rivers coming to Pakistan, which are a constant source of irritation in the bilateral relations and vital for Pakistan's water and energy security. Similarly, Afghanistan is also considering construction of dams on Kabul River, which is likely to create two front dilemmas for Pakistan. The situation is even challenging when viewed in the context of availability of only two major dams in Pakistan, Tarbela, and Mangla which were constructed in late 1960s and 1970s; however, “their capacities are reducing due to silting.” While construction of new dams is highly politicized, charged with massive outrage from political parties and masses, therefore, not likely to happen in near future. It is expected that the availability of less water is likely to increase food shortages and create conflict among the federating units and the federation. Similarly, the negative impacts of climate change can cause melting glaciers and unusual pattern of rains, which may lead to flooding as we are witnessing in year 2022.

3.6. Food Security

The Indus Basin, which is the bedrock of agriculture support in Pakistan is seriously threatened by the negative impacts of climate change. The changing weather patterns may result in the reduction of crops yield “(15–20% in cereals) and livestock (20–30%)” [ 48 ], impacting negatively the dairy and poultry as the agriculture and livestock sectors are the “backbone of Pakistan's economy, which contributes 23% to GDP and accounts 60% exports of country” [ 49 ]. The food security is vulnerable to climate change due to reduction in crops and adversarial influences on livestock. Reduced water in real harvesting season is changing the crops patterns and the lands are vulnerable to droughts and flooding as well, which also create massive migrations. The devastations of ongoing floods have created serious food shortages in Pakistan and inflation is also all time high. Pakistan's Prime Minister has already rung the alarm bells by stating that Pakistan is vulnerable to serious food shortage, and it is feared that essential food items may be imported this year and next year as all cultivable lands are under water [ 50 ].

3.7. Implications of Climate Change on the National Mosaic of Pakistan

3.7.1. competition over water resources.

Agriculture-based economies are heavily dependent on the natural resources of the state. This is extremely critical situation for the state to cope with the needs of the masses and economic challenges when there is a scarcity of sustainable renewable and nonrenewable resources. Countries like Pakistan where socioeconomic challenges, such as rising population, lack of political will, internal security issues, urbanization, lack of public policies for managing population, and natural resources are growing at a faster pace as compared with its economic growth. Even the geographical position of the state near the equator is unable to supplement its growing needs and demands. It is an alarming situation for the Pakistan that in the presence of other socioeconomic challenges, the drastic impacts of climate change have also increased its economic and political challenges, while the insufficiency of water reservoirs is creating serious concerns of inter-provincial disharmony. The rising population has not only affected the quantity of water reservoirs but has also depleted the quality in the same manner. The increase in anthropogenic activities is causing water stress on natural reservoirs, while since independence in 1947, the country is facing persistent decline in the availability of water year on year basis due to multitude of factors examined above. According to the estimates of Mr. Jamshed Iqbal Cheema, Chairman Pakistan Agriculture Scientists Association (PASA), in 1947, the capita water availability was 5600 cubic meters, which decreased by 406% from 5260 cubic meters in 1951 to 1038 cubic meters in 2010 and 877 cubic meters in 2020. The PASA estimates that available water will further deplete by 2025 to a level of 660 cubic meters and by 2050 will reach 575 cubic meters as shown in Figure 9 below [ 51 ].

Per capita availability of water reservoirs in Pakistan [ 52 ].

The causes of water shortages in Pakistan exist in two types: (a) incidental causes related to poor water management policies at local level, (b) operational causes include the political conflicts (over the water resources on provincial/institutional level) and the societal differences over water management and distribution. Water issue is not only related with the environmental degradation, but also linked with the social factors as abnormal population growth causes a rise in demand of clean water resources, disturbance of equilibrium between communities, provinces, and water resources distribution. As Pakistan consists of multiple ethnicities and diversified geographical terrain but competition over the access of water resources has often created tensions and conflicts among the federating units. The growing vulnerabilities of communities over the insufficiency of water reservoirs promote lawlessness, antistate sentiments and sense of deprivation among its own nationals. Due to lack of strong monitoring mechanism over channelization of available water, for creating a balanced approach between demand and supply of available water, the population is incentivized for illegal water proliferation. The tacit approval from the water management departments has resulted in water theft cases mostly in Southern Punjab and interior Sindh, as there are many illegal drillings, hidden pipelines, and unrecorded water connections from main supply lines. Such illegal water channels mostly exist adjacent to sanitation systems in cities and rural areas, contaminating the available water. The increase in anthropogenic activities is also causing water stress on natural reservoirs.

Another reason of growing water scarcity is unlawful construction and sanitation systems near or over the water channels, which continuously contaminate water, especially during floods blend these altogether. The role of administration is highly crucial in this matter to control such catastrophic constructions and lessen the pressure on water consumption. The unprotected constructions along rivers, lakes, and streams often cause blockage of natural water channels particularly in monsoon and rainy season resulting into loss of lives, roads network, and infrastructure damage as the enormity of flood damages to clean water channels is immeasurable. In 2010 floods, Pakistan witnessed unimaginable losses as around 20 million people were victims, 1.7 million died, 436 healthcare centers were devastated, 80% food reserves were smashed, 2.9 million households were severely damaged, nearly 1.1 million houses were damaged and $ 9.7 billion economic loss in 135 districts. While the issues of accessing the safe water channels was still in demand after flood (96.8% before vs 96.7%). In year 2022 floods, these losses have increased manifolds and caused unprecedented damages to natural water resources. Around 33 million people are direct victims, death troll rising above 1500, while 110 district of Baluchistan (Quetta, Pishin, Killa Saifullah, Nushki, Jaffarabad, and Washuk), Punjab (Koh e Suleman ranges, Rajanpur, D. G Khan), Sindh (Mirpur Khas, Thatta, Sajawal, and Shaheed Benazir Abad) and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (Swat and lower/upper Dir) are declared as most calamity hit areas. While 30% water channels are severely affected, and 63% flood victims are struggling for sufficient clean water channels. The economic losses suffered have been estimated to the tune of US$ 30 billion. The analyses amply highlight the insufficiency of available water and demand, compounded by adverse effects of floods during this year.

3.7.2. Negative Impact on Agriculture Sector

Pakistan is heavily relying on agricultural sector for its international exports and domestic food demands, but in the presence of water crisis and conventional irrigation system for its agricultural production, the country will face severe challenges of water scarcity in times to come. According to Global Food and Security Index 2021, Pakistan ranked 80 out of 113 countries [ 53 ] and Global Food and Security Index 2022, it has further slipped by four numbers and now ranks 84 out of 113 countries [ 54 ]. Pakistan lags behind all South Asian countries in food insecurity. The lack of progress in agricultural sector is also linked with the mismanagement of land and water resources, unsatisfactory policies of water governance, exponential population growth, and the negative impacts of climate change. Pakistan has also failed to adopt new strategies like advanced water management in agricultural sector, usage of adaptation methods in yields productions to enhance water consumption in eco-friendly manner, educate farmers about the water recycling and water productivity techniques. While water scarcity is a highly charged political issue in Pakistan as there is a turf war between the provinces and the federation. However, Punjab government took good initiative and introduced national water policy of Pakistan to ensure regularization of water governance system in the country. In the presence of fragile agriculture sector development, climate degradation impacts have worsened the livelihood and yield production. Therefore, on a year-on-year basis, the agriculture yield is squeezing, demand of water is increasing, and unplanned urbanization is resulting into loss of precious agriculture land. The overall impact of these issues is creating negative repercussions on agriculture production and aggravating food security situation in Pakistan.

3.7.3. Water Quality and Public Health Risks

The availability of clean drinking water is biggest national security challenge for Pakistan today. The water proliferation and loss of water supply sources from government record is not only raising the administrative issues but also causing multiple public health problems. The contamination of water along with the presence of sanitary pipelines expose the population with the contagious and chronic diseases like diarrhea, cholera, jaundice, typhoid, hepatitis C, liver cancer, and gastrointestinal infections. The water scarcity in Pakistan has enormous impact on health care system as well as the country is struggling with the diseases that are almost nonexistential in developed countries. The significant findings of this study are that in Pakistan, 50% diseases spread through contaminated water and provide most suitable medium of spread and transfer various bacterial and viral infections from human to human or animals to human as the country is facing the 40% of mortality rate caused by the contaminated water intake, while the frontline victims of waterborne diseases are pregnant women, newly born babies, and early teenage groups. It is also important to note that the primary source of water in Pakistan is sub-surface water channels, which over a period have become the hub of different variants of pathogens. According to World Health Organization (WHO) report, approximately, 2.5 million deaths occur annually in Pakistan from widespread diarrheal diseases caused by bacterial and protozoan agents present in inferior quality of drinking water. Around 80% population is exposed to unsafe water as UNICEF Pakistan has also shared the alarming fact that the well-being and health standards of youngsters are at risk; therefore, each year, 53,000 children under the age of 5 years lose their lives due to unhygienic water as 70% of household work and domestic usage of water in Pakistan is dependent on bacterial water sources. The floods of 2022 have compounded the problems of availability and access to clean drinking water. The field visits to rural and urban Sindh, KPK, and Baluchistan vindicated scarcity and contamination of drinking water, which has been reported by several NGOs and media as well. The stagnant water has been contaminated due to mixing of sewage water and created ideal breading grounds for bacteria causing serious health risks. Nonavailability of compatible medical support, inaccessibility, and nondisposal of flood water have created many health risks and entire population in affected areas is vulnerable to adverse effects of contaminated water. In most areas, the disposal of flood water is left to the nature and the government agencies have demonstrated inability to manage it, therefore, spread of waterborne diseases will continue for prolonged period in future.

4. Policy Recommendations

4.1. legislation for interministerial coordination.

The ministry of climate change should take a lead role and coordinate with all the provinces on the issues of water security. All related agencies and departments should work in harmony with this ministry for synergetic response. Similarly, international engagements would be essential component for successful policy implementation; therefore, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Climate Change should remove overlaps and avoid duplications wherever required.

4.2. Proper Enforcement of Legislation

“Pakistan Water Apportionment Accord 1991” highlights the judicious distribution of Indus River System (IRS) water among the federating units of Pakistan. However, this accord was unable to deal with the conflicts arising due to unfair distribution of water at times. To resolve this issue, “Indus River System Authority” (IRSA) was established in 1992 [ 55 ], through an act of Parliament to work as an institution for Indus water resources regulation and monitoring in Pakistan. However, the problems related to fair water distribution, monitoring and installation system, and the treatment plants lagged during the implementation phase. There always remained issues between Punjab and Sindh regarding unfair water theft. Despite establishment of “Council of Common Interest” (CCI) to resolve the grievances of provinces, but issues persist due to weak implementation mechanism and weak governance. The devolution of power under 18th amendment of the constitution, devolved the water distribution among the rural and urban areas of each province as an internal matter of the provinces; however, water crises remain at large seriously impacting inter-provincial harmony. The Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) is assigned the task of ensuring clean drinking water across Pakistan. Implementation of water-related policies requires a great deal of realization and urgency on the part of the political elites of Pakistan. The gravity of the issue needs to be addressed as a national emergency, otherwise, Pakistan is vulnerable to water scarcity situations normally witnessed in African continent.

4.3. Judicious Distribution of Water

Being a lower riparian, Sindh is often complaining about the water shortage, especially in the pre-monsoon period each year. The claims made by Sindh government at numerous occasions regarding Punjab stealing its share of water have been denied by Indus River System Authority (IRSA). After the 18th amendment, the allocation of resources to the provinces has been ensured to be judicious; however, the internal distribution of these resources to the rural and urban areas is the responsibility of the provinces. The IRSA is mandated to address, regulate, and develop standard operating procedures (SOPs) for water allocation to the provinces. Regrettably, each province has its own peculiarities in terms of agricultural needs and population, therefore, making the interpretation and implementation of the accord more difficult. To resolve water distribution issues on sustainable basis, the “whole of government approach” is recommended along with on-site consultative visits by the representatives of provincial and federal governments and political leaders for expeditious resolution of conflicting issues. Creating unnecessary fault lines is detrimental to national integration, which should be avoided at all costs.

4.4. Water Treatment Plants and Recycling of Water

Pakistan is in dire need of installing treatment plants as every year, hospitals are flooded with patients, both adults and children suffering from diseases resulting from contaminated water. People living in both urban and rural areas are exposed to contagions and microbial bacteria, which enter the body through water, unsafe for drinking. Not everyone in Pakistan can afford bottled water, therefore, it is the responsibility of the state to provide its citizens with safe drinking water. As we know that Pakistan receives a major portion of heavy rains between the months of July to September, where majority of rainwater ends up in rivers, ponds, while the rest of it results in heavy floods of cities and inhabitants. The government through installation of treatment plants can filter clean drinking water for ensuring public health. Similarly, more wastewater recycling plants are the need of time, which should be installed at priority. In rural areas, wastewater treatment is almost nonexistent, leading to pollution of surface and groundwater [ 56 ]. The government should pay instantaneous attention to the evolving challenges of treatment of wastewater for sparing clean water for drinking purposes and balanced delivery of recycled water to other uses like irrigation.

4.5. Climate Emergency and Disaster Response Mechanism

Pakistan was successful in convincing the world leaders during recently concluded United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) sessions about vulnerabilities to climate risks and the unprecedented impact during year 2022. UN Secretary General Antoni Guterres and US President Joe Biden personally appealed for help for Pakistan to alleviate the suffering and quick rehabilitation of flood victims. It is suggested that Pakistan should consider climate diplomacy as an urgent priority and initiate the process of engagement at bilateral and multilateral levels with developed countries to reduce the vulnerabilities and risks of climate change. Additionally, the disaster response mechanism also needs to be re-energized with strong interagency coordination. The existing structure of national and provincial disaster management authorities should be reinforced through capacity building and professional training. Appropriate equipment for rescue and relief operations also needs to be provided at vulnerable sites for immediate response to save maximum lives. The infrastructure development in flood affected areas should be expedited for which essential resources should be mobilized well in time. Such preparations should be done and rehearsed every year during pre-monsoon season for synergetic and a befitting response to minimize reaction time and save maximum lives.

5. Conclusion

Climate change is the evolving global threat, and Pakistan is most vulnerable from its negative impacts. The year 2022 witnessed extreme drought on one hand, followed by unusual floods over the short span of 2-3 months. Therefore, for Pakistan, alarm bells are ringing to take the holistic stock of situation by declaring climate emergency and adopt “whole of nation” and “whole of government” approaches for a comprehensive response ensuring strong interagency cooperation and capitalizing on the synergetic application of all Elements of National Power (EoNP) for optimum results. It is essential to integrate the respective departments under the umbrella of national and provincial disaster response agencies for harmonious functioning, coordination, and execution. There is dire need to create strong national realization to “conserve, preserve, and proportionally distribute existing water resources” [ 57 ]. Moreover, smart means for spending agriculture water and recycling of water for uses other than drinking would be helpful as such practices have been adopted by most of developed countries. The construction of more water reservoirs is the need of time and current floods across Pakistan are the testimony of this fact. It is felt that this study shall help the relevant government ministries as an academic policy input for addressing water security issues in Pakistan on sustainable basis.

Data Availability

Conflicts of interest.

The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

• Election 2024
• Entertainment
• Newsletters
• Photography
• Personal Finance
• AP Investigations
• AP Buyline Personal Finance
• Press Releases
• Israel-Hamas War
• Russia-Ukraine War
• Global elections
• Asia Pacific
• Latin America
• Middle East
• Election Results
• Delegate Tracker
• AP & Elections
• March Madness
• AP Top 25 Poll
• Movie reviews
• Book reviews
• Personal finance
• Financial Markets
• Business Highlights
• Financial wellness
• Artificial Intelligence
• Social Media

UN: Months after Pakistan floods, millions lack safe water

People get drinking water from a water collecting point at a slum area, in Karachi, Pakistan, Tuesday, March 21, 2023. World Water Day will be observed on March 22, to aim to highlight the importance of freshwater and advocate for sustainable management of this vital resource. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

People get drinking water from a water collecting point at a slum area, in Karachi, Pakistan, Tuesday, March 21, 2023. World Water Day will be observed on March 22 to aim to highlight the importance of freshwater and advocate for sustainable management of this vital resource. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

People wait to get drinking water from a water collecting point at a slum area, in Karachi, Pakistan, Tuesday, March 21, 2023. World Water Day will be observed on March 22, to aim to highlight the importance of freshwater and advocate for sustainable management of this vital resource. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

People visit a market to buy grocery and other stuff, ahead of the upcoming Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, in Peshawar, Pakistan, Tuesday, March 21, 2023. Muslims across the world will be observing the Ramadan, when they refrain from eating, drinking and smoking from dawn to dusk. Ramadan is expected to officially begin Thursday or Friday in Pakistan, though the timing depends on the alignment of the moon. (AP Photo/Muhammad Sajjad)

Workers remove a structure after finishing repairing and paint work in a mosque ahead of the upcoming Muslim fasting month of Ramadan, in Karachi, Pakistan, Tuesday, March 21, 2023. Muslims across the world will be observing the Ramadan, when they refrain from eating, drinking and smoking from dawn to dusk. Ramadan is expected to officially begin Thursday or Friday in Pakistan, though the timing depends on the alignment of the moon. (AP Photo/Fareed Khan)

Police officers control a crowd gathered to get a free sack of wheat flour at a distributing point, in Lahore, Pakistan, Monday, March 20, 2023. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif will provide free flour to deserving and poor families during the Muslim’s holy month of Ramadan due to high inflation in the country. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

A woman leaves as other wait their turn to get a free sack of wheat flour at a distributing point, in Lahore, Pakistan, Monday, March 20, 2023. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif will provide free flour to deserving and poor families during the Muslim’s holy month of Ramadan due to high inflation in the country. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

Women jostle to get a free sack of wheat flour at a distributing point, in Lahore, Pakistan, Monday, March 20, 2023. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif will provide free flour to deserving and poor families during the Muslim’s holy month of Ramadan due to high inflation in the country. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

Women show their identity cards to receive a free sack of wheat flour at a distributing point, in Lahore, Pakistan, Monday, March 20, 2023. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif will provide free flour to deserving and poor families during the Muslim’s holy month of Ramadan due to high inflation in the country. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

Women show their identity cards to get a free sack of wheat flour, at a distributing point, in Lahore, Pakistan, Monday, March 20, 2023. Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif will provide free flour to deserving and poor families during the Muslim’s holy month of Ramadan due to high inflation in the country. (AP Photo/K.M. Chaudary)

• Copy Link copied

ISLAMABAD (AP) — The United Nations children’s agency on Tuesday warned that after last summer’s devastating floods, 10 million people in Pakistan, including children, still live in flood-affected areas without access to safe drinking water.

The statement from UNICEF underscored the dire situation in impoverished Pakistan, a country with a population of 220 million that months later is still struggling with the consequences of the flooding, as well as a spiraling economic crisis. The floods, which experts attribute in part to climate change, killed 1,739 people, including 647 children and 353 women.

So far, less than half of UNICEF’s funding appeal for Pakistan — 45% of $173.5 million — has been met. According to the agency, before the floods struck last June, water from only 36% of Pakistan’s water system was considered safe for human consumption.

The floods damaged most of the water pipelines systems in affected areas, forcing more than 5.4 million people, including 2.5 million children, to rely solely on contaminated water from ponds and wells, UNICEF said.

“Safe drinking water is not a privilege, it is a basic human right,” said Abdullah Fadil, the UNICEF representative in Pakistan. “Yet, every day, millions of girls and boys in Pakistan are fighting a losing battle against preventable waterborne diseases and the consequential malnutrition.”

“We need the continued support of our donors to provide safe water, build toilets and deliver vital sanitation services to these children and families who need them the most,” Fadil added.

Amid the crisis, Pakistan faces uncertainty about a bailout from the International Monetary Fund. Analysts say the revival of the $6 billion IMF bailout, which was signed in 2019, would help Pakistan. If the global lender released a key installment of the package, it would encourage other international financial institutions to help the country, they say.

At a U.N-backed conference in Geneva in January, dozens of countries and international institutions pledged more than $9 billion to help Pakistan recover and rebuild from the floods. But most of the pledges were in form of project loans, and the projects are still in the planning stages.

Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif’s government is also facing a surge in militant attacks and political instability as his predecessor, Imran Khan, is campaigning for early elections. Sharif has rejected the demands by Khan, who was ousted in a no-confidence vote in Parliament last April.

Sharif seeks political and economic stability to ensure speedy reconstruction in the flood-hit areas, where the weakest and the children are paying the price.

“In flood-affected areas, more than 1.5 million boys and girls are already severely malnourished, and the numbers will only rise in the absence of safe water and proper sanitation,” UNICEF said.

The floods caused more than $30 billion in damages as large swaths of the country remained under water for months, forcing millions to live in tents or make-shift homes near stagnant waters that led to the spread of disease.

Sharif’s government is also trying to provide food and cash assistance to flood survivors as the Islamic fasting month of Ramadan starts this week, adding more financial burdens to the poorest of the population.

The UNICEF warning came ahead of World Water Day, which will be observed on Wednesday as part of global efforts to highlight the importance of freshwater and advocate for sustainable management of the vital resource.

The crisis of water shortage and pollution in Pakistan: risk to public health, biodiversity, and ecosystem

• Trend Editorial
• Published: 11 February 2019
• Volume 26 , pages 10443–10445, ( 2019 )

Cite this article

• Ghulam Nabi 1 , 2 ,
• Murad Ali 3 , 4 ,
• Suliman Khan 1 , 2 &
• Sunjeet Kumar 1 , 2  

50k Accesses

80 Citations

25 Altmetric

Explore all metrics

Avoid common mistakes on your manuscript.

Dear Editor,

According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Pakistan ranked third among the countries facing severe water shortage. In May 2018, the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) announced that by 2025, there will be very little or no clean water available in the country (Shukla 2018 ). It must be noted that while per capita availability in the 1950s was approximately 5000 m 3 per annum, it has now declined to below 1000 m 3 , which is an internationally recognized threshold of water scarcity (Aziz et al. 2018 ). Currently, only 20% of the country’s population has access to clean drinking water. The remaining 80% populations depends on polluted water primarily contaminated by sewerage (fecal, total coliforms, E. coli colonies), and secondarily by fertilizer, pesticides, and industrial effluents (Daud et al. 2017 ; Sahoutara 2017 ). Such water pollution is responsible for approximately 80% of all diseases and 30% of deaths (Daud et al. 2017 ). In the dried-out pipeline, a single E. coli bacterium can multiply into trillions in just a week (Ebrahim 2017 ), and such pipes are used for the water supply without any treatment. Consuming such polluted waters has not only resulted in the death of several people, but also cause bone and teeth diseases, diarrhea, dysentery, typhoid, hepatitis, cancer, and other waterborne diseases (Daud et al. 2017 ). According to World Health Organization (WHO), waterborne diarrheal diseases are responsible for over 2 million deaths annually across the world, with the majority occurring in children under 5 years (WHO 2018 ).

In Pakistan, approximately 60 million people are at risk of being affected by high concentrations of arsenic in drinking water; the largest mass poisoning in history (Guglielmi 2017 ). Arsenic poisoning can cause cancer, restrictive pulmonary disease, skin lesions, cardiovascular problems, diabetes mellitus, gangrene, neurological impairments, and problems in endocrine glands, immunity, liver, kidney, and bladder as well as socio-economic hazards (Rahman et al. 2018 ). Unfortunately, still, no epidemiological data of arsenic poisoning, alternate drinking water, and health interventions are available to the people at risk.

Taking into consideration the drought-hit deaths of approximately 1832 children in the last 4 years (The Newspaper’s Staff Reporter 2018 ), drying lakes (Ali 2015 ), rivers (Channa 2010 ), lowering water table, excessive use of water, lack of storage mechanism, population explosion, and climatic changes warrant serious attention (Kirby 2018 ). Furthermore, the lack of sound national water policy, lack of federal and provincial government’s interest, water conflict between nuclear-armed Pakistan and India (Kirby 2018 ), deforestation, the overwhelming potential threat to the country’s glacier reserves (Nabi et al. 2017 , 2018 ), and the poor water supply will likely negatively affect agriculture, ecology, and local biodiversity. The wildlife has already entered the red zone (Shaikh 2018 ) and can possibly turn into human crisis with the danger of large-scale regional migration of people due to drought-like situation. We have recommended some suggestions that could possibly help the people of Pakistan to get rid of water shortage and pollution, maintain an ecology, improve agriculture, and conserve local biodiversity.

Sound National Water Policy: An effective National Water Policy and management are needed to conserve and enhance water resources, minimize drinking water pollution, and improve the country’s water supply with proper sewerage facilities.

Switch to bottled drinking water: Although this seems to be an expensive option, but keeping in view the higher concentration of arsenic (50 μg/L) (Guglielmi 2017 ), fecal, bacterial, and other contamination in drinking water (Sahoutara 2017 ), it is time to switch to the bottled drinking water. The polluted water can be used for other household activities. Indirectly, this will also bring the attention of public towards water pollution and conservation.

Building dams: Both large- and small-scale dams are needed, but every effort must be made to minimize their social and ecological cost in terms of population displacement and shock to the existing ecosystem. Hence, small dams having minimal environmental and social cost should be prioritized whose waters can be used for drinking, agriculture, electricity, and fisheries. It will also help in the conservation of aquatic biodiversity and other animals, especially during seasonal migration. Instead of the many dams that are under consideration (Qureshi and Akıntug 2014 ), the authors report that hundreds of small dams can be built in the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, which is rich in both aquatic and terrestrial biodiversity and can also possibly help them in conservation by providing habitat and protection from flooding.

Reforestation: Annually, Pakistan loses approximately 2.1% of its forests. If this rate continues, Pakistan will run out of forests within the next 50 years (Randhawa 2017 ). Therefore, reforestation and its management in Pakistan are intensely needed and will help in bringing rain, stabilize climate, temperature, pollution, and siltation. It will also help in controlling recurring floods and will provide suitable habitat for the local biodiversity.

Steam-based car washing: There are hundreds of thousand car washing centers in Pakistan. They not only consume a huge amount of freshwater for cleaning, but also pose a great threat to public health, biodiversity, and ecology by polluting the rivers and environment. Switching to steam-based car washing system will not only conserve the freshwater but will also reduce the water and environmental pollution.

Artificial rain: Like China, Pakistan needs a rainmaking network throughout the country. This will help in solving the problems of water shortage, protecting the ecology, reducing natural disaster, and conserving biodiversity. China is developing the world’s largest weather-manipulating system comprising tens of thousands of fuel-burning chambers. This system will increase rainfall over an area of approximately 1.6 million square kilometers (Chen 2018 ). The friendly relation, and with the execution of China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), Pakistan can take advantage to establish this technology in Pakistan.

Trans-boundary level initiatives: Currently, India is damming Pakistani River water which was allocated to Pakistan under the 1960 Indus Waters Treaty with the help of World Bank (News Desk 2018 ). Constructive bilateral discussions can help solve the problem of water shortage and threats to the rivers dependent biodiversity.

Installation of low-cost water filters: The installation of a large number of low-cost water filters throughout the country and especially in polluted areas can provide clean drinkable water to the poor people who cannot afford the expensive bottled water.

Glaciers conservation: Outside the polar region, Pakistan has the highest numbers of glaciers (> 7200) than any other country (Khan 2017 ). Unfortunately, they are melting faster than any other part of the world to an extent that by the year 2035, the country will have no more glaciers (Dawn 2013 ). Furthermore, with the execution of CPEC, humongous quantity of black carbon (Nabi et al. 2017 ) will be blown by the air to the glaciers that will further accelerate melting. Therefore, a national plan for the management of these glaciers is needed. The impact on glaciers can be minimized by allowing only electric vehicles in the nearby highways, providing solar energy systems to the local inhabitants, reforestation, and control over greenhouse gasses.

Restoring lakes. Pakistan has a total of 60 lakes and most of them are highly polluted. Due to pollution, only in Manchar Lake; Asia’s largest freshwater lakes, 14 fish species have become extinct (Ebrahim 2015 ). Restoring these lakes will provide better habitat for the biodiversity, promote ecotourism and agriculture, and water to the lake-dependent.

Regulating tube-wells drilling: Due to increase in population, demand for water increases. Whether it is domestic use, commercial or agriculture, there has been an unregulated use of tube-wells across the country where people extract as much water as they like. Because of this practice, there has been an exponential rise in the number of tube-wells due to which water table is going down in many parts of the country. Therefore, an implementation of strict policy is needed to regulate the number of tube-wells. Furthermore, in the overexploited region, artificial groundwater recharge might help to improve the water table.

Awareness: In Pakistan, water is free and therefore no attention has been given by the public to its conservation. Both on the print and electronic media, awareness is needed for water conservation. Also, as it is practiced in many countries, it is feasible to come up with a realistic water pricing mechanism to discourage its enormous waste both at household level as well as commercial level.

In summary, water scarcity and pollution are serious overwhelming threats to the world’s sixth populous country, Pakistan. The government needs to pay urgent and serious attention to water conservation and minimizing water pollution to avoid serious consequences in the form of drought, famine, internal migration, and loss of biodiversity.

Ali I (2015) Sindh’s lakes drying due to water scarcity, encroachment. DAWN. https://www.dawn.com/news/1191040 . Accessed 5 June 2018

Aziz D, Masood A, Hashmi Z (2018) Turning the tide, The News International. https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/328174-turning-the-tide . Accessed 11 June 2018

Channa AS (2010) Saving the Indus river from drying up. DAWN. https://www.dawn.com/news/871992 . Accessed 8 June 2018

Chen S (2018) China needs more water. So it's building a rain-making network three times the size of Spain. South China Morning Post. https://www.scmp.com/news/china/society/article/2138866/china-needs-more-water-so-its-building-rain-making-network-three . Accessed 21 January 2019

Daud MK, Muhammad N, Shafaqat A, Muhammad R, Raees AB, Muhammad BS, Muhammad UA, Shahzad ASC et al (2017) Drinking water quality status and contamination in Pakistan. BioMed Res Int 2017:7908183

Article   CAS   Google Scholar  

Dawn (2013) Pakistan’s glaciers will melt by 2035. https://www.dawn.com/news/1054435 . Accessed 7 June 2018

Ebrahim ZT (2015) Manchar Lake: toxic water, dead fish fill Asia’s largest freshwater body. Dawn. https://www.dawn.com/news/1208624 . Accessed 8 June 2018

Ebrahim ZT (2017) 91pc of Karachi’s water is unfit to drink. Dawn. https://www.dawn.com/news/1348750 . Accessed 8 June 2018

Guglielmi G (2017) Arsenic in drinking water threatens up to 60 million in Pakistan. Science. http://www.sciencemag.org/news/2017/08/arsenic-drinking-water-threatens-60-million-pakistan . Accessed 9 June 2018

Khan RS (2017) Pakistan’s glaciers face new threat: highway’s black carbon. https://www.reuters.com/article/us-pakistan-glaciers-highway/pakistans-glaciers-face-new-threat-highways-black-carbon-idUSKBN1D30WK . Accessed 9 June 2018

Kirby W (2018) Brink of crisis - India in furious warning to Pakistan: we will CUT OFF your water supply. https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/938329/India-Pakistan-water-conflict-dispute-indus-treaty-punjab-dams-world-war-3 . Accessed 9 June 2018

Nabi G, Suliman K, Shahid A, Ahsan K, Rabeea S (2017) China–Pakistan economic corridor (CPEC): an alarming threat to the biodiversity of northern Pakistan. Biodivers Conserv 26(12):3003–3004

Article   Google Scholar  

Nabi G, Ullah S, Khan S, Ahmad S, Kumar S (2018) China-Pakistan economic corridor (CPEC): melting glaciers—a potential threat to ecosystem and biodiversity. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25:3209–3210

News Desk (2018) India will dam three rivers, divert water flowing to Pakistan: minister. The Express Tribune. https://tribune.com.pk/story/1670497/1-india-will-dam-three-rivers-divert-water-flowing-pakistan-minister/ . Accessed 10 June 2018

Qureshi FU, Akıntug B (2014) Hydropower potential in Pakistan. ACE 2014 11th International Congress on Advances in Civil Engineering. 21–25 October 2014.Istabul, Turkey

Rahman MA, Rahman A, Khan MZK, Renzaho AMN (2018) Human health risks and socio-economic perspectives of arsenic exposure in Bangladesh: a scoping review. Ecotoxicol Environ Saf 15:335–343

Randhawa S (2017) Pakistan to run out of forests in 50 years at current rate. https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2017/03/21/pakistan-to-run-out-of-forests-in-50-years-at-current-rate/ . Accessed 10 June 2018

Sahoutara S (2017) Karachi’s water unfit for human consumption. The Express Tribune. https://tribune.com.pk/story/1458783/90-water-supplied-karachi-unfit-human-consumption/ . Accessed 9 June 2018

Shaikh AR (2018) Sindh wildlife at risk due to drought. Daily Times. https://dailytimes.com.pk/307939/sindh-wildlife-at-risk-due-to-drought/ . Accessed 22 January 2019

Shukla V (2018) Pakistan’s alarming water crisis: country to run out of clean water By 2025. Politics. https://www.valuewalk.com/2018/05/pakistan-water-crisis-clean-water-2025/ . Accessed 8 June 2018

The Newspaper's Staff Reporter (2018) Over 500 children died in drought-hit Thar this year, Murad told. DAWN. https://www.dawn.com/news/1440059 . Accessed 22 January 2019

WHO (2018) Waterborne disease related to unsafe water and sanitation. http://www.who.int/sustainable-development/housing/health-risks/waterborne-disease/en/ . Accessed 9 June 2018

Download references

Author information

Authors and affiliations.

Institute of Hydrobiology, The Chinese Academy of Sciences, Wuhan, People’s Republic of China

Ghulam Nabi, Suliman Khan & Sunjeet Kumar

University of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shijingshan District, Beijing, People’s Republic of China

Department of Management Studies, University of Malakand, Chakdara, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan

German Development Institute, Bonn, Germany

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Ghulam Nabi .

Additional information

Responsible editor: Philippe Garrigues

Publisher’s note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Nabi, G., Ali, M., Khan, S. et al. The crisis of water shortage and pollution in Pakistan: risk to public health, biodiversity, and ecosystem. Environ Sci Pollut Res 26 , 10443–10445 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-04483-w

Download citation

Received : 11 June 2018

Accepted : 05 February 2019

Published : 11 February 2019

Issue Date : 01 April 2019

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-04483-w

Share this article

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Find a journal
• Publish with us
• Track your research

Pakistan’s Water Crisis

With water wars predicted to escalate amid worsening climate change, we go undercover in Pakistan, where water thieves are proliferating.

One-third of the Himalayas’ glaciers are forecast to disappear by the end of this century, threatening the supply of water to nearly two billion people across South Asia.

Disturbing signs of what can happen when people are unable to get enough water are emerging in Pakistan’s largest city, Karachi. For many residents, the taps are already running dry as demand for water soars, heatwaves strike more frequently and water infrastructure is deteriorating.

Some resort to stealing water for their homes. Others make a profit selling the precious commodity to those willing to pay. 101 East meets the water thieves of Karachi and reveals how climate change is leaving Pakistan dry.

Essay on Water Crisis and Water Shortage in Pakistan with Outline

• November 27, 2023

Kainat Shakeel

Water, a precious resource sustaining life on our earth, is facing an extremity in the colorful corridor of the world. One similar region scuffling with a severe water deficit is Pakistan. In this essay, we claw into the causes, impacts, and implicit results of the water extremity in Pakistan, aiming to exfoliate light on a critical issue that demands immediate attention.  

 The term” water extremity” refers to a situation where the vacuity of water falls short of the demand, leading to severe consequences for ecosystems, mortal health, and profitable stability.

Importance of Addressing Water deficit in Pakistan:

 Pakistan, an agricultural frugality heavily reliant on irrigation, faces dire consequences due to water failure. It not only affects husbandry but also poses trouble to the overall well-being of the nation.

Causes of Water Crisis in Pakistan:

• Population Growth:  The exponential growth of Pakistan’s population intensifies the water demand, placing immense pressure on water coffers.
• Climate Change:  Changing climate patterns, including irregular downfall and rising temperatures, contribute to the reduction of water sources, aggravating the extremity.
• Mismanagement of Water coffers:  Inefficient use and misallocation of water coffers further aggravate the problem, emphasizing the need for better governance and resource operation.

Impact on Agriculture:

• Reduced Crop Yields:  inadequate water for irrigation leads to reduced crop yields, directly impacting the livelihoods of growers and the nation’s food security.  
• Economic Consequences:  The decline in agrarian productivity due to water failure has far-reaching profitable counteraccusations, affecting both pastoral and civic populations.

Water Scarcity in Urban Areas:

• Unequal Distribution:  Civic areas frequently witness the unstable distribution of water coffers, with certain regions facing further acute deaths than others.
• Increased Demand:  Rapid urbanization and population growth in metropolises elevate the water demand, straining structures and coffers.

Results of the Palliate Water Crisis:

• Improved Water Management

Implementing effective water operation practices, including better irrigation ways and conservation sweats, is pivotal to addressing the extremity.

• Investment in Water structure 

 Acceptable investment in water structure, similar to heads and budgets, can enhance water storehouse capacity and distribution.

• Public Awareness and Education 

 Educating the public about responsible water operation and the significance of conservation plays a vital part in mollifying the extremity.

Role of the Government and NGOs:

• Policy perpetration 

 Governments must apply and apply programs that regulate water use and promote sustainable practices.

• Collaborative sweats 

Collaboration between governmental bodies and non-governmental associations( NGOs) is essential for a comprehensive and effective approach to resolving the water extremity.

Sustainable Practices:

• Rainwater Harvesting 

Encouraging the relinquishment of rainwater harvesting ways in individual and community situations can contribute significantly to water conservation.

• Effective Water Use Technologies 

Embracing advanced technologies for effective water use in husbandry and civic settings is pivotal for sustainable water operation.

Future Prospects:

• Long-Term Strategies 

Developing and enforcing long-term strategies that address the root causes of the water extremity will be necessary for securing a water-sustainable future for Pakistan.

• Global Perspectives on Water Crisis 

Understanding and learning from global sweat to combat water failure can give precious perceptivity and results applicable to Pakistan’s environment.

 In conclusion, the water extremity in Pakistan is a multifaceted challenge that demands immediate attention and combined sweat. By addressing its root causes, enforcing sustainable practices, and fostering collaboration between stakeholders, there’s a stopgap for a water-secure future for the nation.

Conclusion:

In the face of the water extremity, collaborative action is imperative to secure a sustainable future for Pakistan. By enforcing comprehensive strategies, fostering mindfulness, and embracing innovative results, the nation can overcome the challenges posed by water failure.

Kainat Shakeel is a versatile Content Writer Head and Digital Marketer with a keen understanding of tech news, digital market trends, fashion, technology, laws, and regulations. As a storyteller in the digital realm, she weaves narratives that bridge the gap between technology and human experiences. With a passion for staying at the forefront of industry trends, her blog is a curated space where the worlds of fashion, tech, and legal landscapes converge.

Water Crisis in Pakistan!

Water is essential to life on Earth, yet our planet is suffering a serious water crisis. Water scarcity has become an international crisis affecting millions of people around the globe and contributing to climate change, urbanization and unsustainable water management practices – including Pakistan. Amid all this turmoil is Pakistan where its own unique water crisis exists.

Rapidly rising global population:

One of the main factors contributing to our current water crisis is an ever-increasing global population . As this figure rises, so too does demand for water, needed for drinking, cooking, cleaning, and agriculture purposes. With growing populations comes increasing demands on already limited freshwater resources resulting in water scarcity across many regions.

Climate change: Another significant contributor to the water crisis, climate change has altered weather patterns with less predictable rainfall patterns and an increase in droughts and floods, further diminishing availability of water in dry and semi-arid regions with limited resources.

Urbanization and industrialization:

Water consumption by humans has also contributed significantly to the global water crisis. As more people move to cities, their demand for water increases, straining resources. Furthermore, industrial activities require large volumes of freshwater which results in overuse and depletion of freshwater sources.

Unsustainable water management strategies:

Over-extraction of groundwater, pollution of water sources. And ineffective irrigation techniques all play a part in creating the current water crisis. Such practices depleted freshwater reserves making it more challenging to meet growing demands for freshwater supplies.

Access to Clean Water is limited:

The water crisis has severe repercussions for human health, agriculture and the environment. Due to limited access to clean water and sanitation facilities. Waterborne diseases like cholera, typhoid and dysentery spread quickly through populations without access. Furthermore, agriculture – an industry which heavily consumes water resources – is particularly hard hit. Crops fail to flourish which create food shortages while farmers struggle for survival in an unforgiving landscape.

The water crisis also has environmental ramifications:

Depletion of freshwater resources leads to degradation of ecosystems and the loss of biodiversity. While impacting their functioning rivers, lakes, and wetlands that provide essential ecological services. Such as purifying drinking water supplies, controlling flood waters, providing flood control measures, or serving as habitat for aquatic species.

To address the water crisis:

There is an urgent need for a coordinated and integrated response. That takes into account all the contributing factors of this problem, including promoting water conservation and efficiency. Investing in infrastructure projects that facilitate sustainable management practices, adopting sustainable water management practices, and encouraging renewable energy sources. This may require measures such as increasing conservation efforts, investing in infrastructure investments, adopting sustainable water management practices and encouraging renewable energy production to address this complex situation.

Water conservation and efficiency measures:

Environmental water conservation involves both minimizing wastage and optimizing its use, through measures such as fixing leaky pipes, using more efficient appliances, and encouraging water-saving behavior. Investment in infrastructure such as dams, canals, or reservoirs may provide storage and distribution solutions in times of drought.

Sustainable water management practices:

At its core, water management involves balancing demand and supply, protecting sources from pollution, and encouraging more water-efficient irrigation techniques. Renewable energy sources like solar or wind power may help decrease carbon footprint of water supply systems.

Water crisis is an international challenge:

The water crisis is an impending global threat that requires immediate attention. It stems from multiple factors including population growth, climate change, urbanization and unsustainable water management practices. Addressing the water crisis requires a multidisciplinary and holistic strategy including conservation/efficiency initiatives, infrastructure investments and renewable energy promotion; only together can we overcome it and ensure its sustainable future for all.

Pakistan: Water crisis and Pakistan

Pakistan is among the countries most affected by the water crisis. Being predominantly arid and semi-arid with limited water resources. And with population growth fuelling increased demand for water sources; climate change resulting in unpredictable rainfall leading to droughts and floods only compounding this situation further.

Agriculture Sector in Pakistan: The agriculture sector accounts for over 90 per cent of total water usage. Unfortunately, inefficient irrigation techniques such as flood irrigation have resulted in significant wastage of water resources. And have resulted in the depletion of aquifers leading to decreased availability.

Implications of water crisis:

Pakistan’s water crisis has had far-reaching repercussions for human health, agriculture and the environment. A lack of access to clean water and sanitation facilities has resulted in waterborne diseases like cholera, typhoid and dysentery sweeping through. Water scarcity also threatens agriculture which relies heavily on freshwater supplies. Leading to crop failures and food shortages while depletion of freshwater sources has degraded ecosystems and reduced biodiversity levels significantly.

How can Pakistan address its water shortage issue?

There is an urgent need for an integrated approach that encompasses water conservation and efficiency initiatives, investing in infrastructure development projects, adopting sustainable water management practices and encouraging renewable energy sources.

Promoting water conservation and efficiency measures, such as using efficient irrigation techniques, can reduce water waste. Investing in infrastructure such as dams, canals, and reservoirs can aid with water storage and distribution during periods of drought. Adopting sustainable management practices such as groundwater recharge can replenish aquifers to ensure sustainable usage of groundwater resources while encouraging renewable energy sources such as solar-powered pumps can help lower carbon footprint of supply systems.

Pakistan has taken several measures to address its water crisis:

Such as the National Water Policy of 2018 which seeks to ensure sustainable use of water resources. Furthermore, the government has initiated various water management projects, such as building the Diamer-Bhasha dam which increases storage capacity while simultaneously increasing hydropower generation capacity.

Urgent action must be taken immediately to combat Pakistan’s water crisis:

Pakistan faces a critical water crisis that requires urgent action from all levels of government. This issue stems from multiple factors, including population growth, climate change and unsustainable water management practices. Addressing it effectively will require taking multiple approaches such as conserving and efficiently using water resources; investing in infrastructure; adopting sustainable management practices and using renewable energy sources for renewable power production; prioritizing water issues to secure sustainable future for all Pakistanis.

Impact of Pakistan’s Water crisis:

Pakistan’s current water crisis has had serious repercussions, which include:

Agriculture: Pakistan’s economy relies heavily on its agriculture sector for food security and rising prices, yet due to the water crisis this sector has been severely hit. Crop failures and reduced yields have caused food insecurity as prices skyrocket.

Human Health: Lack of access to clean water and sanitation facilities has caused an outbreak of water-borne diseases like cholera, typhoid, and dysentery – making their prevalence an important public health risk.

Environment: Toxic chemicals from agricultural runoff have polluted freshwater resources and degraded ecosystems, leading to loss of biodiversity and reduced ecosystem services.

Energy: Pakistan’s energy sector relies heavily on hydropower generation, but has been seriously compromised by the water crisis. Less water availability has resulted in reduced hydropower generation leading to power shortages and an increase reliance on fossil fuels for generation of power.

Socio-Economic: The water crisis has contributed to increased poverty, inequality and social unrest – particularly in rural areas where agriculture provides primary employment. Competition over water resources has caused conflict which subsequently escalates social tensions further.

Overall, Pakistan’s water crisis has had an immense negative effect on socio-economic development, public health, and the environment. Addressing it requires prompt action and a comprehensive strategy encompassing water conservation/efficiency promotion/investing in infrastructure/sustainable water management practices/promote renewable energy sources/ etc.

Conclusion: mes The global water crisis affects many countries, including Pakistan. Pakistan stands out in this respect due to its arid and semi-arid climate as well as rapidly growing population. Pakistan is facing a water crisis with devastating impacts for agriculture, human health, the environment, energy consumption and socio-economic development – urgent action are required immediately to mitigate them. Addressing Pakistan’s water crisis requires taking an integrative approach that encompasses conservation and efficiency measures, investing in infrastructure improvements, adopting sustainable management practices and encouraging renewable energy use. While the government of Pakistan has made steps towards solving its crisis, more needs to be done as an international community if we hope for a brighter future for all.

About Author

Muhammad Munib Rasool

See author's posts

Unveiling Alternative Pathways to Teaching

Online degree programs in the usa, brics expansion: implications for the global order and beyond, the path to css success and significance of online classes, the 2024 elections: a potential turning point for pakistani politics, pakistani women face equal opportunities as men, investment in education is important, how to get an online degree in the usa, digital currency have an effect on the economy, how central bank digital currencies (cbdcs) will impact the global financial system, subscribe to our mailing list to get the new updates.

We don't spam.

Poverty Alleviation in Pakistan

Economic growth and human development, related articles.

Unemployment in Pakistan

Your critique of the essay was constructive and informative, giving me a better understanding of how to approach similar topics in the future

• Pingback: Will Pakistan default in 2023?! - CSS ESSAYS

Thank you sir

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment.

Adblock Detected

• Privacy Policy
• Our Authors
• Subscribe Us
• Google Plus

CSS Essay: Water Crisis in PAKISTAN – Causes and Consequences

Essay Outline | Water Crisis in PAKISTAN – Causes and Consequences

1. Introduction

– Water crisis – number one global risk based upon its impact on society (World Economic forum 2015). – Water Scarcity – a nightmare scenario for Pakistan, despite it having the world’s largest glaciers. – Pakistan being a single basin country is facing challenges of water scarcity. – Pakistan among the 36 most water stressed countries.

2. Overview of the Current Situation of water crisis in Pakistan.

2.1 IMF report throwing light on the severity of Pakistan’s water crisis. (a) Pakistan has the world’s 4th highest rate of water use. (b) Pakistan is the 3rd water stressed country in the world. (c) The aquifer in the Indus basin is the 2nd most stressed in the world.

3. Water Vision 2025.

(3.1) In 2009, the Running on Empty study projected that Pakistan’s water shortfall could be 5 times the amount of water stored in Indus reservoirs.

Check Also:  CSS Essay: Free speech should have limitations

4. Causes of water crisis in Pakistan. International causes ‘Water terrorism by India’.

(a) Violation of Indus water Treaty by India. (i) Construction of Wullar barrage on River Jhelum. (ii) Construction of Buglihar Dam on River Chenab. (iii) Kishanganga project on river Neelam. (b) China’s mega water diversion scheme and its impact on the flow of river Indus and Satluj.National Causes. (a) Delay in the construction of dams and water reservoirs (Pakistan’s total dam storage is 30 days of average demand whereas the figure is 220 days for India. (i) Kalabagh Dam – a controversial issue. (b) Rapid population growth and urbanization (i) Country is among the world’s top 6 most popular states and as per the UN report, projected to have a population of 300 million by 2050 causing a threat to sustainability of water resources. (c) Financial constraints (d) Inefficient water policy making and lock of proper management of water resources by the government. (i) Agricultural sector is untaxed and more than 90 pc of Pakistan’s water resources are allocated to that sector. (ii) Unavailability of safe drinking water to the entire population. (iii) Tarbela, Mangla and Chashma reservoirs have lost about 5 million acre-feet due to sedimentation. (iv) An estimated 40% of water that run through canals is lost because of seepage. (4.3) Natural causes (i) Increase in the global warming and melting of glaciers. (a) On average, glaciers currently lose between 50 to 150 cm of thickness every year that is 2 to 3 times more than the average of the 20th century.

5. Consequences of Water Crisis. Global Impacts.

(a) Threat of nuclear war between India and Pakistan on the water issue. i.e; India uses water as weapon against Pakistan in IWT agreement conflict in 2016. Impacts. (a) Water wars among provinces (Escalating tensions between Punjab and Sindh). (b) Severe episodes of droughts leading to the devastation of agriculture. (i) Water logging and salinity is increasing as a result of installing more and more tube wells in order to overcome the shortage of dams. (c) Loss of habitat and devastation of tourism industry leading toward unemployment and Economy. (d) Sewerage disposal issue resulting in pollution (e) Lesser availability of clean drinking water (arsenic poisoning) (f) Importation of water at high rates.

6. Water management strategies International Level

(a) Pakistan should take the issue to International court of Justice in order to urge India not to make dams on Western rivers. At National Level (a) Construction of dams and improvement of existing canal system. (i) Construction of Kalabagh Dam [It will create a reservoir with usable storage capacity of 6.1 MAF]. (ii) Raising Mangla Dam, Gomal Dam, Satpara dam, and Sabakzai Dam should be the top priority. (iii) Canlas should be cemented in order to stop the seepage of water. (iv) Creation of Think tank (planning commission, HEC, universities, PEC) for water Resources Development and Management. (b) Water pricing reforms tariff reform is critical to ensure sustainable water use as canal water is heavily underpriced. (c) Bringing the agriculture within the tax net. (i) Agriculture in Pakistan is largely untaxed more than 90% of Pakistan’s water resources are allocated to this sector. (d) Sufficient and sincere political will is required to implement water pricing reforms. (e) Nationwide campaign to raise awareness. (i) Regarding less water intensive crop production exp drip irrigation system should be adopted. (ii) Optimum crop rotation should be encouraged.

7. Conclusion

– Public consensus on national issue to defeat the nefarious aims of enemies. – Provinces should reform the agriculture taxation system in the context of NFC award in order to entrance the political interest of powerful land owners. – Control of excessive groundwater exploitation is imperative.

Check Also:  CSS Essay: The United Nation has Failed to Measure Up to the Demands of its Charter

Css essay | water crisis in pakistan – causes and consequences.

Water is the most precious natural resource in the world. Without it there would be no life on earth. Unfortunately, water is becoming scarce and there are various factors leading to this scarcity. According to a report of world economic forum, water crisis is the number of one global risk based upon the devastation it is likely to create. Particularly in Pakistan the situation is alarming as Pakistan, though, bestowed with the world’s largest glacial resources is facing the prospect of water crisis. The expected demand and supply imbalance is creating challenges on the domestic, agricultural and industrial level as Pakistan’s water availability is heavily relied upon Indus Basin.

Water crisis is a nightmare scenario, that is all too real but inevitable for Pakistan. According to a recent IMF report, Pakistan is among the 36 most water stressed countries in the world. It has the world’s 4th highest rate of water use. Its water intensity rate measured as per unit of GDP is the world’s highest. Pakistan is also the 3rd most water stressed country in the world. According to New Nasa Satellite data of world’s underground aquifers, The aquifer in the Indus basin is the second most stressed in the world. In 2009, The Running of Empty study projected that by 2050. Pakistan’s water shortfall would be 5 times the amount of water that could be stored in the Indus river’s vast reservoir. Federal Minister of Water and Power, Khuwaja Asif has also warned that scarcity of water is another issue looming on Pakistan.

Water terrorism on the part of India is a major reason of Pakistan’s water crisis. India has constructed two hydro electric projects on river Neelam and called Kishanganga in Indian dialect. The Baglihar dam on Chenab permits the agreed quota of water flow to Pakistan despite Pakistan sought the help of World Bank to stop its construction. Wullar barrage has been constructed at the mouth of Wullar lake on river Jhelum. Pakistan believes that the construction of dams could be used as a geostrategic weapon as India can control the flow of Rivers. Moreover, Indian project on Wullar lake also has the potential of disrupting the triple canal Lover Bari Doab Canal. Further, China’s Mega Water Diversion scheme is also a source of concern for Pakistan as it could stop the flaw of water to river Indus and Satluj which is a tributary of Indus River.

Check Also:  CSS Essay Outline: Global Warming: its Causes and Consequences

Delay in the construction of dams and reservoirs are also creating a threat to the amount of water available for household consumption and for agricultural and industrial use. Pakistan’s total dam capacity is 30 days of the average demand whereas the figure is 1000 days for Egypt and 220 days for India. Construction of Kalabagh dam has been delayed and the reason for its delay is the bitter controversy among the four provinces. The only province in favor of its construction is Punjab. When completed, the dam would create a reservoir with usable storage capacity of 6.1 Million acre-feet (MAF). Moreover, despite the two

ground-breaking ceremonies of Diamer-Bhasha dam by the successive governments, developmental work on the life saving project could not be started. Financial constraints accompanied with the lack of resources, infrastructure and political will among the leaders are some key factors which do not let the construction of dams, barrages and reservoirs in Pakistan.

Rapidly growing population along with urbanization are also some significant factors leading towards water scarcity. Pakistan is among the world’s top 6 most populous states as per the UN report, and is projected to have a population of about 300 million by the end of 2050 which has threatened the sustainability of water resources. The rapid increase in population is leading toward escalated demand of water and food resources and leading toward the depletion of natural resources.

Weak administration and poor water management are also causing water scarcity. It is the lack of effective policy making on the part of government that agriculture sector in Pakistan is largely untaxed. And more than 90% of Pakistan’s water resources are allocated to this sector. Moreover, traditional and antiquated agriculture techniques are leading towards 50 to 60% loss of water. Water intensive crops like rice and sugarcane are being cultivated without taking into account the optimum crop rotation. This inefficient water distribution is creating water shortages and has forced people to use unhygienic water for daily consumption.

The gradual loss in saving capacities of the existing reservoirs is also contributing to water scarcity. Tarbela, Mangla and Chashma reservoirs have lost about 5 million acre-feet, that is, 2.5% of their water saving capacity due to heavy sedimentation carried by the rivers. The canal beds are either unlined or poorly lined and 40 % of water that runs through canals is lost because of seepage. Increase in the global warming is a major reason of melting of glaciers. On average, glaciers currently lose between 50 to 150 cm thickness every year. Pakistan is sandwiched between China and India, the first and third largest emitters of carbon de oxide gas Co2 respectively. Glaciers are a major source of water supply for Pakistan, however, according to a study glaciers in Pakistan are melting continuously because of rising temperature and. By the year 2050, the country will no longer posses water reserves in the form of glaciers.

Water terrorism on the part of India is posing the threat of a nuclear war between the two rivals. Border between India and Pakistan is considered the most stressed border in the world. Any war between these two rivals is going to have negative repercussions on not only the south Asian region but also on the entire Asian continent. Hence, the water issue between the two neighbors has the potential to bring the entire region to the brink of major disaster, that is, the possibility of a nuclear war.

The short term implications of water crisis are already visible as tensions are escalating among provinces. The level of distrust, pertaining to the distribution of water, is increasing between Punjab and Sindh. Open Chashma-Jehlum canal to meet Punjab’s requirement has created tensions between the provinces in the past. Dispute could be resolved if the provinces show enough maturity in resolving the dispute amicably as they have done previously in resolving the dispute on National Fiancé Commission (NFC) award.

Check Also:  CSS Essay | War on Terrorism is Contributing towards Growing Abuse of Human Rights

Water shortage is also contributing to an increase in water logging and salinity. Reduction in the dam storage capacity is leading toward lesser per-acre water availability. To cope with this problem farmers are installing more and more tube wells. That is why salinity has become a major issue in most parts of Punjab and Sindh. Sindh contributes significantly in the production of cash crops including cotton and rice, however, scarcity of water is adversely affecting the production and exports of these crops. Water tables are dropping drastically and the resultant pumping of water to meet increased water demands is increasing the cases of arsenic poisoning. Lesser availability of clean drinking water is giving birth to many parasitic diseases and deadly viruses such as dengue. Water reduction is also creating problems in sewerage disposal and hence increasing pollution and temperature.

Pakistani government has to take significant measures to cope with the looming threat of water crisis. Arbitration, reconciliation and dialogue are the best options to resolve the issue of water between the two neighbors. Although water commissioner level talks between India and Pakistan have failed during August last year as India did not budge on its design of Kishanganga dam and also refused to halt the construction of river Chenab. However, a fresh round of talks should be held and both neighbors should understand that nuclear war is not the solution of their problems.

At the national level, construction of new dams is vital to meet the constantly increasing water demand. Construction of Kalabagh dam is imperative as it will create a reservoir with useable storage of 6.1 million nacre-feet. Government should also its divert its attention toward the rapid construction of Daimer- Bhasha Dam, which when constructed would be able to store 8 MAF of water. Construction of such larger reservoirs is imperative to maintain the cultivation of water intensive crops in the fertile lands of Sindh and Punjab Raising the structure of Mangla dam, Gomal dam, Satpara dam and Sabakzai dam should be the top priority of the government. Capacity building and improvement of existing canal system is necessary as 40% of water that runs through canals is lost because of seepage of water.

Government should create a think tank including planning commission, Higher Education Commission, (HEC) and universities in order to improve water resource development and management Water prancing reforms should be introduced to ensure sustainable water use as canal water is heavily underpriced. Agriculture in Pakistan is predominantly irrigated (90 percent) and consumes about 95 percent of annually available surface water. Bringing the agriculture sector within the tax net will bring sufficient funds to build new dams and will help improving supply to the water stressed areas of Pakistan. Nationwide campaigns should be conducted to raise the importance of water saving by growing less water intensive crops and by encouraging optimum crop rotation.

Water is an engine to economic growth in Pakistan. The country has the necessary natural endowment and is blessed with the world’s most extensive irrigation system. What basically required is the public consensus to defeat the nefarious aims of the enemies. Provinces should reform the system of agricultural taxation to entrench the political interests of powerful landowners. Control of excessive ground water exploitation is also imperative in dealing with the looming threat of water crisis in Pakistan.

About the author

KIPS CSS Network

You may also like.

Essay Outline: Electoral Reforms in Pakistan:...

Health for All | Essay Outline for CSS PMS

Exploring the Economic Potential of BRICS Countries:...

Art and Morality Essay Outline

Instruction in Youth is Like Engraving in Stone |...

Public Office is a Public Trust | Complete CSS Essay

Leave a comment x.

Essay on Water Crisis or Water Shortage in Pakistan with Outline

Essay on water crisis | water shortage in pakistan essay with outline for matric, intermediate, 2nd year, fa, fsc, ba and bsc.

Here is an essay on Water shortage in Pakistan with Outline for the students of Class 10, Class 12 and graduation. In this essay on the water crisis, we will discuss the importance of water in our daily life and how people are misusing it in our country. The source to get water, problems of people of interior Sindh and Balochistan, as well as Indian basin treaty, will also be discussed in Water Crisis Essay.

Essay on Water Shortage in Pakistan | Water Crisis in Pakistan Essay with Outline for Class 10, Class 12 and Graduation

• Uses and importance of water in the life of a common man
• How people in Pakistan are ill-using this blessing
• People of interior Sind, and Balochistan bring water from a long distance for their daily use
• Source of getting water
• Indian Basin Treaty between Pakistan and India to built dams
• Suggestions to overcome water crisis
• Importance of Kala Bagh Dam

Water is a great endowment and blessing of God to man. Without water, life in this world is impossible. Water gives life and energy to everything. It is essential for the life and survival of human beings birds, beasts, plants and trees. It is the main source of energy and power. We use it for cooking our food and quenching our thirst. It is used for washing our clothes and bathing our body. It is the main source of irrigating our fields. Without it, we cannot conceive of life on earth.

Unfortunately, this great gift and blessing of God has been wasted and ill-used by the people of Pakistan. We have never paid any attention to preserve and save this great treasure of Nature. There are many areas in Pakistan where people do not get water for drinking purpose. In the interior Sind, and Balochistan, there are many towns and villages where people have to carry water from as far as thirty or forty kilometres away from their homes. The Women, children and old men have to undertake the long journey to carry water for their daily use. This is a very sad spectacle. The sources of getting water are very few and limited. Water is present in the subsoil of the earth. It Is brought to earth by the operation of tube wells and electric motors. The other source of water is the rivers, lakes and streams. Water comes into rivers and streams by the melting of massive and glaciers.

This source of getting water is quite doubtful and uncertain. Sometimes, the summer season begins late and these icebergs and glaciers are not melted in time. Consequently,0 the rivers and lakes become dry and barren. The country falls a victim to the shortage of water.

In 1960, a treaty between Pakistan and India was signed with World Bank meditation. The treaty is known as the “Indian Basin Treaty”. According to it, the control of waters of Ravi, Bias and Sutlag was given to India. It was decided that the Indian Govt. would help Pakistan in the construction of two large dams on the Indus and the Jhelum. But this was never fulfilled. Indian Govt. often stopped the flow of water in our rivers when it liked, out of sheer enmity.

The only way to overcome water crisis is to build dams on the river banks. The earliest dams were built to store water for domestic and agriculture. Hydropower became a major reason to build dams.

The construction of Kalabagh Dam is the need of the time. If it is not built in time, our country is going to face severe starvation and famine. Essay on Water Crisis or Water shortage in Pakistan , previously in Exams – P.U. 2000 B.Sc . However, you should look at Essay on Load Shedding with outline as well.

• More In English Essays

Essay Writing 101: The Basics That Every Writer Should Know

Students and Social Service Essay with Quotations

Load Shedding in Pakistan Essay – 1200 Words

Roman zahra

September 16, 2018 at 12:07 pm

Essay length is very short

October 21, 2018 at 2:50 pm

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

• Privacy Policty
• Terms of Service
• Advertise with Us

Today's Paper | April 14, 2024

No respite from water crisis in karachi even on eid days.

KARACHI: While people continue to face acute water shortages in many parts of the metropolis on the eve of Eidul Fitr, there is no respite in sight from the water woes even during the three-day of the religious festival with suspension of supply through water bowsers for the next two days, it emerged on Tuesday.

The worst-hit will be the salubrious parts of the city, including Defence Housing Authority and Clifton, where residents mainly rely on supply of potable water through water bowsers.

Residents from almost every part of the city complained that the Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation had piled miseries on them during Ramazan as they faced acute water shortages in their respective areas.

A spokesman for the water utility, however, said that the KWSC had made special arrangements for supply and drainage of water across the city before and during Eid.

Supply from seven govt hydrants to remain suspended till Thursday

He said that water supply was affected in some parts of the city due to mechanical activities, adding that the supply had to be suspended for repair and maintenance work that led to water scarcity in some areas.

KWSC chief executive officer Syed Salahuddin Ahmed told Dawn that all pumping stations in the city were functioning normally and 520 million gallons of water per day was being supplied to the city from the Dhabeji Pumping Station.

“The demand of water has increased with the hot weather,” he said adding that effective measures for the supply and drainage of water would be taken around Eid gatherings, mosques, imambargahs, and schools throughout the city.

However, residents said that water had not flowed through the main pipelines for the past several days in their localities leaving them with no option but to be fleeced by mushrooming water tanker mafia to meet their daily requirement.

Tauseef Shah, resident of Gulshan-i-Iqbal Block-13, said that the 2,000-gallon water tanker which they used to buy for Rs2,000 was now available at Rs5,000 to 6,000 in his area.

“It happens on every Eid,” he said adding that the tanker mafia with connivance of water utility officials minted millions of rupees each year during religious festivals.

In district Central, water shortage continued to hit residents who alleged that the water meant for the district was being supplied to other parts of the city.

They said that the Sakhi Hasan Hydrant was closed for the past three days due to shortage of water, thus depriving the residents of alternative arrangement for water supply.

Sources said that the Sakhi Hasan Hydrant was made operational only for eight hours to supply water in the district.

Meanwhile, the water utility said that the supply of water through tankers from seven official hydrants would remain suspended on Wednesday and Thursday as the tanker drivers would not turn up at duty due to Eid celebrations.

In charge of hydrant cell Elahi Bux Bhutto said that there were 2,800 registered water tankers supplying 12 to 15 MGD water to various parts of the city.

He said that the water tanker service remained closed on the first two days of Eid as drivers went to holidays.

Published in Dawn, April 10th, 2024

Is the shiny new $1.6bn corporation the answer to Karachi’s water woes?

Dirty water supply, water supply from hub dam restored after canal breach plugged.

اسرائیلی وزیراعظم غزہ میں ‘غلطی’ کا ارتکاب کررہے ہیں، امریکی صدر کا غیر متوقع بیان

آج کل کے نوجوان عید کا پہلا دن سو کر کیوں گزارتے ہیں؟

عید کے موقع پر فلسطینیوں سے اظہار یکجہتی کیسے کیا جا سکتا ہے؟

Recap: Six Months Of Israel’s Siege Of Gaza

Garbage is Not Just Garbage But an Invitation to Diseases

Ismail Haniyeh Repeats Ceasefire Call After Sons Killed

What Mood Swings?

Overthinking? What Overthinking!

Explained: Palestine At United Nations

Why Did Mexico Suspend Ties With Ecuador?

TOP NEWS STORIES: “Gaza Is Not Gaza Anymore”

Dear visitor, the comments section is undergoing an overhaul and will return soon.

Latest Stories

Opposition alliance Tehreek Tahafuz Ayeen-i-Pakistan launches nationwide drive from Pishin

Lightning kills 15 in Punjab, Balochistan amid heavy downpours

AI providing new tools to threat actors for attacks, says cybersecurity firm

Two soldiers martyred during intelligence-based operation in KP’s Buner district: ISPR

Sydney knife attacker shot dead after killing 6 in Bondi mall

Gunmen abduct and kill 9 passengers from Punjab after ID check on bus near Balochistan’s Noshki

Sania Mirza says sports taught her that bad days don’t last in life

Inside cricket star Aliya Riaz and commentator Ali Younis’s grand wedding

K-Pop singer Park Bo-Ram dies at 30

Most popular.

Investigations ordered into Bahawalnagar ‘stand-off’

‘Iran not supporting IS in Pakistan’

ISPR says joint inquiry to ascertain facts of ‘unfortunate incident’ in Bahawalnagar

US topples China as Taiwan’s largest export market due to chips, AI demand

Cartoon: 13 April, 2024

Justice Afridi won’t hear suo motu on ‘meddling’

Shahpurkandi Dam: India-Pakistan experts advocate cooperation for water security

Editorial: A re-evaluation of how security is conceptualised and implemented in Pakistan is long overdue

Why climate governance needs to be revisited

GB’s grievances must be addressed lest they spark extensive unrest

Feeding smiles: As Gaza starves, Palestinians rise to the occasion to feed thousands of hungry mouths

An endless wait for rights

Climate governance revisited

Roots of barbarism

His first ‘fudget’

Complicit in genocide

Security lapses

An eventful season, living rough.

Saudi investment

Charity for change, walton land allegations.

Pakistani police search for gunmen who abducted bus passengers and killed 11 in the southwest

• Show more sharing options
• Copy Link URL Copied!

Pakistani police searched for gunmen who killed nine people after abducting them from a bus on a highway in the country’s southwest. The same attackers earlier killed two people and wounded six in another car they forced to stop.

The abductions took place on Friday in Baluchistan province, which has long been the scene of an insurgency by separatists fighting for independence.

The outlawed Baloch Liberation Army claimed responsibility for the attack.

It said it had information from sources that plain-clothed spies were on the bus, according to a statement from the group. The gunmen killed the nine men after checking their ID cards to ensure they were intelligence officers.

The group offered no evidence to support the allegation that spies were on the bus.

Earlier Saturday, deputy commissioner of police Habibullah Mosakhail said the gunmen had set up a blockade, then stopped the bus and went through the passengers’ ID cards. They took nine people with them, all from the eastern Punjab province, and fled into the mountains, he said.

Police later recovered nine bodies under a bridge about 5 kilometers (3 miles) from the highway.

On Friday, the same gunmen had opened fire at a vehicle that failed to stop for their blockade, killing two and wounding six, police said.

A search for the perpetrators was underway, Mosakhail said. The bus was heading from the provincial capital of Quetta to Taftan, a town bordering Iran.

Witness Sajjad Ahmed, who was a passenger on the bus, said there were 70 people on board. Masked men stopped the vehicle near the city of Nushki, took away nine people and told the driver to continue the journey, he told reporters.

“We heard the armed men open fire on those people as we drove away,” said Ahmed. “We heard the sounds of firing. The driver took the bus to the closest police station. We didn’t know if those people were alive or not.”

Another passenger, Mohammad Tahir, said the gunmen who boarded the bus had targeted people from Punjab. “They said, ‘Get up from your seats whoever is from Punjab,’” said Tahir. They asked the standing passengers if they were from that province and then swore at them. “‘You kill our children,” said Tahir, quoting the gunmen. ‘“You do bad things to us.’”

An initial police report said that 19 of the passengers were traveling to Iran on their way to Western countries as migrants. The report, shared with The Associated Press, said that two of those abducted and killed were human smugglers. Punjab has emerged as a hotspot for Pakistanis trying to make the perilous journey to Europe hoping for a better life there.

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif condemned the attack, expressing his “deep sorrow and regret over this shocking incident.” He offered his condolences to the families of the victims and said he stood by them in their hour of grief, according to a statement from his office.

“The perpetrators of this incident of terrorism and their facilitators will be punished,” Sharif said.

Abductions are rare in Baluchistan, where militants usually target police forces and soldiers or infrastructure.

Although the government says it has quelled the insurgency, violence in Baluchistan has persisted and the bus attack is the latest incident in the restive region.

Authorities are also struggling to contain militancy in other parts of the country.

In the northwest province of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the army said Saturday that two soldiers were killed in a gunfight with militants in Bunar district.

In a statement, the army said a high-profile Pakistani Taliban commander was also killed. He was involved in activities against security forces, extortion and the targeted killing of civilians, according to the statement.

A spokesperson for the Pakistani Taliban, Muhammad Khorasani, paid tribute to the slain commander.

Associated Press writer Riaz Khan in Peshawar contributed to this report.

Top headlines by email, weekday mornings

Get top headlines from the Union-Tribune in your inbox weekday mornings, including top news, local, sports, business, entertainment and opinion.

You may occasionally receive promotional content from the San Diego Union-Tribune.

More in this section

Nation-World

White House says US will ‘support’ Israel’s defense against airborne attack from Iran

Israel aviation authorities will close Israeli airspace to all flights ahead of impending Iranian drone strike

Israeli military says Iran has launched drones at Israel, will take hours to arrive

Cyprus suspends processing of Syrian asylum applications as boatloads of refugees continue arriving

Cyprus says it’s suspending processing all asylum applications by Syrian nationals because of large numbers of refugees from the war-torn country that continue to reach the island nation by boat, primarily from Lebanon

Veteran Nebraska police officer killed in crash when pickup truck rear-ended his cruiser

A veteran Nebraska police officer was killed when his cruiser was struck by another vehicle after he made a traffic stop

Homicide suspect kills himself after fleeing through 3 states, authorities say

Authorities said they’re investigating a case of domestic violence that ended with a man dead and a woman injured in South Dakota, and the suspect fleeing through Wyoming before killing himself in Colorado