Not a drop to drink

CJP Saqib Nisar must be lauded for highlighting the water crisis in Pakistan. While it is true that the amount raised so far is not enough to construct a dam, the money can be utilised to resolve other major issues related to the water crisis. According to an estimate, 50 percent of water is lost before it reaches agricultural land – at present the agricultural sector is consuming roughly 90 percent of water supply – because of faulty infrastructure.

Also, it has become our habit to waste water while taking bath, brushing teeth, and doing dishes and laundry. The Pakistani people should adopt water conservation tips to avoid the waste of water. The government should consider using Rs10 billion to improve our water supply infrastructure and must start a national campaign for raising awareness among people regarding water conservation.

Sardar Sohaib

Islamabad

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The PM’s view that dictator Ayub Khan’s regime was a time of ‘visible development’ is something I completely disagree with. The Ayub Khan decade of development myth has been effectively rejected by history. Foreign aid and loans taken by Ayub started Pakistan’s decline. Dam projects were the bane that made us economic slaves to Western powers. These projects did not only added terrible environmental costs, but were also the main reason for the tragic displacement of many people from places like Tarbela and Ghazi, some of whom have still not been repaid for their land that were forcibly acquired.

The only people who benefited from these projects in the long run were a small coterie of rich industrialist and feudal families. The prime minister must wake up to the realities and facts of the 21st century. Mega dams are no solution to our water problems, we need to develop a chain or series of small sustainable dams and reservoirs along the Indus and other main water systems. At the same time, we must develop cheap and efficient indigenous technologies for alternative clean power sources (solar, wind and geothermal sources) to meet future energy needs as global water resources become stretched by 2025. Instead of looking to the failed dictators of the past, our leaders today must look at the new and dynamic faces of our future, for practical public-based solutions.

Syed Anjum Ali Bokhari

Hazara