‘Dehqan Forum’ marks World Water Day

Islamabad

Lok Sanjh Foundation organised a roundtable ‘Dehqan Forum’ in connection with World Water Day and Indian Water Aggression, says a press release.

In his opening remarks President Pakistan Association of Green Agriculture journalists (PAJAG) Raja Javed Ali Bhatti said that World Water Day, on 22 March every year, is about taking action to tackle the water crisis. In 1993, the United Nations General Assembly officially designated March 22 as World Water Day. World Water Day is coordinated by UN-Water in collaboration with governments and partners. Water is the essential building block of life. The period between 2005 and 2015 was declared the decade of water cooperation by the UN and concepts of trans boundary water collaboration, shared waters and shared responsibilities were initialled.

Chairman of Human Rights & Welfare Trust and Advocate Supreme Court Kowkab Iqbal said that Pakistan has decided to move the World Bank for appointment of Neutral Expert as it has received no nomination from India for joint appointment of neutral expert on ongoing construction of 330MW Kishanganga Hydropower Project being built on Ganga river in held Kashmir and 850MW Ratle hydropower project being erected on River Chenab by New Delhi with faulty designs.

Managing Director Pakistan Institute for conflict and Security Studies Abdullah Khan said that intention of India was not always in favour of Pakistan and they always tried to exploit Pakistan and destruct its economy by various instruments and the water dispute was also a part of it. The country is rapidly moving towards its target of making Pakistan totally barren by building dams on three major rivers Chenab, Jhelum and Indus flowing into Pakistan from the Indian side of the border. These dams are being built in shrewd violation of provisions in Indus Water Treaty signed between the two countries to ensure equitable distribution of water resources.

Chairman Pakistan Dehqan Assembly Dr Shahid Zia said that India is currently constructing both the projects along with mega storages of water on Pakistan Rivers with the designs which are completely breaching the provisions of the Indus Waters Treaty. Pakistan had raised the three objections on Kishanganga project’s design saying that the poundage of the project is 7.5 million cubic meter which is excessive and it should be one million cubic meter. Pakistan also wants India to raise intake by up to 4 meters and also raise spillways up to 9 meters high. And on the issue of Ratle Hydropower plant, Islamabad raised four objections. Pakistan wants India to maintain free board at 1 meter whereas India wants to keep it at 2 meters. In addition India wants to keep the poundage of 24 million cubic meters but Pakistan wants the poundage should of 8 million cubic meters. Pakistan also wants the intake of the project should be raised by up to 8.8 meters and it spillways should be raised by up to 20 meters.

He further said, while water issues have been discussed at the policy level, for example, in the national climate change policy and national drinking water policy. A more holistic national water policy is required. This would include measures to promote efficient use through water pricing, increasing water storage infrastructure, enforcing strict water quality management systems to curb water pollution, controlling population growth and adopting sustainable urbanization patterns. Immediate attention to these proposals will help ensure that Pakistanis have adequate water. And these are the components of Lok Sanjh’s ‘Save our Waters Campaign.’