Pakistan is estimated to be in the top 10 list of the world’s countries facing water scarcity. Stressing on the cause of water issues, a UN representative cited climate change, floods, and drought as the reason. Sindh is facing an acute shortage of river water, which has dropped by 51 percent than normal at Sukkur Barrage. The water shortage is bound to cause extensive damage to crops across the province due to record shortage of water, water officials apprehend.
The inflow and outflow of water at Tarbela Dam has been 60,800 cusecs and 60,000 cusecs respectively. The inflow and outflow of water at Kalabagh has been recorded 77,741 and 71,241 cusecs respectively. Water inflow and outflow at Chashma Link Canal has been 96,423 and 80,000 cusecs respectively, while at Taunsa water inflow and outflow recorded 61,645 cusecs and 57,515 cusecs, according to the water officials.
Water inflow and outflow at Guddu Barrage recorded 33,462 cusecs, while at Sukkur Barrage water inflow and outflow has been 27,180 and 8,350 cusecs respectively. The water inflow at Kotri Barrage has been 4,900 cusecs, and only 200 cusecs going downstream to the Indus delta, according to the water officials. Sindh is facing shortage of irrigation water as recently local people blocked the National Highway and staged protest sit-in over the water scarcity issue in Thatta. The canals are dry and water is unavailable for irrigation of crops as well as for drinking.
Sindh’s information minister Sharjeel Memon had earlier appealed the federal government to provide Sindh’s share of irrigation water. He called the federal authorities to take notice of the shortage of water in Sindh. Sharjeel Memon urged the government to ensure enforcement of the river water apportionment accord 1991. There is a severe shortage of drinking water in the province along with problems in irrigation canals. The economy will face more difficulties if the situation is not addressed. The water scarcity is severely impacting agricultural production and orchards. Farmers and cultivators are worried as the costs of crops were not being met.
In addition, the Sindh Information Minister has also urged the federal government that the water supply to Sindh should be ensured under Pakistan’s Water Apportionment Accord of 1991. Sindh is a lower riparian province. Hence, it is more vulnerable in its dependence on the Indus River for water. According to the Water Apportionment Accord 1991, an agreement signed on the sharing of water between the provinces of Pakistan, Sindh receives 42 per cent of the water share from the Indus Basin. The accord was signed in 1991.
There needs to be a paradigm shift in thinking about water resources management. Water has since long been regarded only in terms of national security. But now, it is time to put people at the centre of the discourse. There is an urgent need to highlight the social and environmental costs of poor water resources management across Pakistan, particularly in Sindh.
If not addressed, the province could face a public health crisis. Last year, the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) found that 80 per cent of the water samples collected from 14 districts of Sindh were unfit for human consumption. It further added that in the megacity of Karachi, 90 per cent of the water was unsafe. Moreover, 78 per cent of the water used in the hospitals of Sindh was found to be contaminated and substandard.
