Pindiites worried about scarcity of water

The last few years have seen water provision in Rawalpindi rise to the top of the news agenda like never before. The city life has its strains, predicament, shocks, and tight spots, some more thrilling than others.

“It's a sad fact of Pindites' life that they must worry about the scarcity of something as essential as water. I'm sitting on a Sunday morning, drinking a cup of tea my uncle made at home with bottled water. Why bottled water? Because of a waterline burst near Faisal Town,” says Murad Hasan from the area.

Several parts of the city currently have unsafe drinking water and use boiled water in effect. Let me narrate to you another tale of my enduring fifteen days of living without running water and getting trapped in an almost waterless situation.

“My tale of the dehydrated area of the city water is mercifully flowing but not water; I want to share what I learned from my waterless ordeal. As my cousin always says, ‘if you don't have a good time, you usually have a good experience.’ That about sums it up: By keeping a bucket of water handy, I almost got used to manually filling the washroom tank whenever it needed flushing. I appreciate the fact that I could still flush a bathroom this old-fashioned manner in a pinch,” adds Murad Hasan.

“If we take an access to water particularly safe drinking water, as truly a matter of life or death, then clothes don't really need to be washed so often. I went the entire two-plus weeks without doing any laundry, when normally I would probably have done at least a couple of loads,” says Najaf Turabi living in Faisal Town.

“And you know what? My clothes still smell and look fine. Laundering clothes less often not only saves water and energy, but it also makes clothing last longer. But once I have lived without running water, it made me realize that functionality and not fashion is the important thing. Besides, I was pretty sure old style open washrooms will eventually come back into vogue, and then I will be ahead of trend,” adds Najaf.

“I also did not need as much water in the kitchen as I initially thought. Without a flowing tap at the ready, I found that I could easily cut down on the amount of water I normally use and waste in the kitchen. I had eggs boiled just fine in about half the amount of water I typically use, and the still steaming water I used to make soft yesterday naan (bread) for the breakfast. The rest of the sweltering water I poured directly into a dishpan to scrub and rinse up the dishes from dinner the night before,” says Waqar Hussain from the same locality.

“Even washing the kitchen floor with a small bucket of water and a handheld sponge rather than a mop saved me at least a couple of gallons. The Wasa gentlemen have been kind in every season. They almost stop water supply to help city residents avoid the sin of wasting this precious resource. Heck, they are so good they don't even provide bowsers except to the influential guys,” adds Waqar.

“There has been mounting criticism over the private bowser distribution system, which is very expensive. Even during winter season, people just fill pots and buckets at filter plants, which usually have broken taps,” says Turab Ali, Waqar’s friend.