FAISALABAD City News

Water issue worsening every year: minister

Says KBD could help resolve water scarcity issue, but project was politicised

From Our Correspondent

FAISALABAD: Federal Minister for National Food Security Rao Sikandar Hayat Khan Bosan has said that the Kalabagh Dam could help resolve water scarcity issue, but the project had been politicised.

He was addressing at a seminar on Pakistan water resources as part of the ongoing Rabi Festival at the University of Agriculture Faisalabad on Friday. He said that the government was making all-out efforts to address the water issue that was deepening every year. He said that dams were being constructed to meet the demand of increasing population amid the threat of decreasing water reservoirs. He expressed his concern that Pakistan had been put in red zone in the index of per capita water availability. He said that use of water efficient irrigation technologies had become the need of hour. He said that the ratio of small farmers had gone up. As many as 95 per cent of the farmers were small that was 68 per cent two decades ago, he added. He said that huge investment was being made in the agricultural sector.

Irsa member Rao Irshad Ali Khan stressed the need to develop dams by saying that electricity produced from hydel cost Rs 2.62, gas Rs 7.43, coal Rs 12.91, furnace oil Rs 17 and wind electricity Rs 11.62. Due to reservoirs sedimentation, Tarbela capacity had declined by 35 per cent as it was designed for 9.6 MAF and now it was 6.33 MAF, he added. He said that Mangla dam storage capacity had reduced by 16 percent and of Chashma by 61 per cent.

UAF Vice-Chancellor Prof Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan said that water per capita availability was 5,650 at the time of the inception, which had now reduced to 991 MAF. He said that water was the life for the public. He said that we could not construct water reservoirs. He said that the canal system brought the life to Faisalabad, which was a barren land a century ago.

The agricultural and water experts expressed concern that the country could not build any big dam for the last 40 years. The country was wasting 30 MAF water annually by sending it into the sea, causing a loss of billions of dollars, they added. Water Management Director Hamid Hussain Shah, progressive farmer Faisal Shah and others also spoke on the occasion.