Rawalpindi :More than 50 per cent residents of city and cantonment board localities depend on tanker mafia for water to run their domestic works while majority of families continuously preferring to migrate from city areas to get water through boring at homes. Water crisis is going to worse day-to-day as drilling (water boring) has reached to 450-500 feet against 250-300 feet in city localities in this regard. ‘The News’ conducted a survey that majority of families continuously preferring to migrate to far off areas from city and cantonment like Soan, Rawat, Kallar, Sihala, Mandra, and Taxila as there are bright chances to find water through boring at homes. The residents of city and cantonment board localities have complained that supply of water comes after a day or two only for half an hour. So, we purchase expensive water tanker to run our domestic chores, they said. Assistant Agriculture Well Drilling (AAWD) Rana Adnan Ansar told ‘The News’ that day-by-day water crisis is going to worse as drilling (water boring) has reached to 500 feet against 240-250 feet in city localities. “If we never recharged ground water, this drilling (water boring) will touch 1,000 feet,” he warned. We needed, at least 10 water reservoirs to store rain water, he advised. Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) Managing Director Raja Shaukat admitting all facts and figures said that majority of families are migrating to out of the city to areas where water is abundant. He said that decrease in water supply had created problems for the agency, which was already getting less that the sanctioned quota of water from Khanpur Dam. He explained that according to the quota, Rawalpindi city has to get 14.6MGD of supply and was getting 6MGD, which has now been reduced to 3MGD. He also said the agency supplies water to its consumers via water tanks. WASA managing director has assured to provide water to Adiala Road community as we are surveying all residential areas here. He has advised to establish more and more dams rather tube wells to end water crisis forever. It is worth mentioning here that the supply of water from Khanpur Dam to Rawalpindi city and the cantonment areas has been reduced due to a decrease in the dam’s water level. The supply of water to Rawalpindi city was reduced from six million gallons daily (MGD) to 3MGD and that to the cantonment area was reduced from 8MGD to 4MGD, leading to a shortage of water in many localities. The water drilling experts said that there is immediate need of at least 10 water reservoirs to recharge ground water otherwise drilling (water boring) will touch to 1000 feet against 500 feet here in city localities. Unfortunately, there was not a single water reservoir to recharge ground water in Rawalpindi except Rawal Dam which is in the jurisdiction of federal capital, Islamabad in this regard, they denounced. The dangerous fact is that ‘Sea Page’ (upper service water) was also polluted not able to drink because of industries and human activities included bad sewerage system here in city localities. Ever-increasing diseases are due to impure upper service water which we are drinking. Already Potohar region is based on rainwater but unfortunately there was not a single water reservoir here in Rawalpindi therefore people of city localities are facing water shortage, they added. They also said that we should establish water reservoirs around WASA tanks to recharge ground water. “We are not suggesting public to further drilling (boring) in their houses as there was no ground water recharging,” they added. The residents of the city areas are strongly affecting while those living tail end areas or in close of Soan River, Korang Nullah, Rawat etc. enjoying healthy water, they claimed. “It was due to water recharging but there was no source of ground water recharging particularly in city and cantonment board areas where big population is living facing water crisis continuously,” they said. Majority of residents of city and cantonment board areas have been at the mercy of tanker mafia for years. The mafia charges Rs1200 for a tanker in summer while Rs1000 in winter. Majority of residents settled in city, cantonment and tail end localities are deprived off even drilling (boring water) as there was no water underground. The residents used expensive drilling from Rs250 to Rs1000 per fit but failed to get underground water. It was due to non-availability of water reservoirs to recharge ground water. According to a report of Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) that the groundwater table in the Rawalpindi city sharply depleted from 550 feet to 650 feet over the last six years due to an over-extraction. Wasa had recommended a ban on the installation of tube wells in the city areas. The government should construct new dams for the supply of water to the residents instead of installing tube wells.
