Lahore’s water table

Lahore is highly populated city and millions gallons of ground water is being extracted daily for domestic and commercial purpose. Extraction of ground water is not permitted in the developed world where surface water (rivers, canals, and artificial and natural lakes) is being treated. Despite the presence of such sources in Lahore, agencies are supplying ground water. The water table above 600 feet in Lahore has either diminished or is highly polluted due to municipal and industrial sewerage water disposal.

Various measures have been taken across the world for the conservation of water. Some of them are very simple and can be followed here in Pakistan. The government should pay immediate attention to Lahore’s groundwater table depletion, which will not be available for future generations. Pakistan already falls in the water-scarce regions. If mitigation measurements to improve the water table depth are not taken, water scarcity may prove worse than our energy crisis.

Babar Imran

Lahore