AIIB to provide Rs50b soft loan for water treatment

LAHORE: The Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) has finally agreed to provide a soft loan amounting to Rs 50 billion for Waste and Surface Water Treatment Project, a mega project conceived by Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) in a bid to provide clean drinking water to the citizens as well as to save the underground water aquifer.

Under the project, Wasa will construct three waste water treatment plants and one surface water treatment plant in the provincial metropolis. Sources in Wasa said that the screening committee of the bank had cleared the project and sent a technical committee to discuss the details with Wasa authorities.

Wasa Managing Director Zahid Aziz confirmed that presently hectic meetings were being held with the technical group of AIIB, which had hinted release of the soft loan in September 2018. He said, "This means we have to prepare PC-I and seek all necessary approvals from the Punjab as well as federal governments before this time."

According to the project, three waste water treatment plants will be constructed in the areas of Mehmood Booti, Shadbagh and Shahdara, which would treat almost 40 percent waste water of the provincial metropolis while the only surface water treatment plant would be built near Ravi Syphon.

Environmental experts said that excess pumping could result in a future disaster and would only worsen the problem resulting in further lowering the water table. They said increasing water pumping operation was expensive solution.

Wasa has planned to construct a mini dam-cum-reservoir for surface water treatment plant at Ravi Syphon, said Wasa MD Zahid Aziz, adding as the groundwater supply of the city would not be able to support the drinking water needs of its rapidly growing population over the coming decade, the alternative sources of drinking water should be explored and cultivated on emergent grounds.

He said the Wasa management was taking every step to fight all future challenges relating to supply of drinking water and was aware of the gravity of the situation regarding ground water depletion. He said a barrage would be constructed at the River Ravi for the surface water treatment plant.

The draft feasibility of this proposal has already been submitted while Punjab Irrigation Department is carrying out a consultancy, he said, adding the barrage would provide a temporary reservoir of treatable water for Wasa, while at the same time assisting a mechanism to replenish the depleting aquifer.

According to the project plan, the reservoir would be used as the feeding source for the Surface Water Treatment Plant (SWTP). The proposed site for this treatment plant is virtually right next to the Ravi Syphon near Ghazi Kakka and would be spread over 150 acres. Some French investors have already expressed interest in the project and a delegation in this regard has also visited the proposed site of the treatment plant.

There is around three to four million acre feet water that skips to Pakistan from India into Ravi and is significantly less polluted to the extent that it can be stored and treated for drinking. The project would address multiple problems of Wasa with regard to providing drinking water, the Wasa MD said.