Water scarcity has become a global problem. Most of the countries in the world are facing water problems and Pakistan is one of them. Pakistan is the third number among the countries suffering from water scarcity where there is severe water scarcity. It is a major problem that destroys the socioeconomic and agriculture of a country. For the past several years, Pakistan has been facing several challenges due to water scarcity which lacks the socio-economic prosperity of the country at large.
According to the IMF, Pakistan’s per capita annual water availability has declined from 1,500 cubic meters in 2009 to 1,017 cubic meters. Pakistan is very close to the 1,000 cubic meter shortage limit, and given the current development, the country is going to reach the danger level soon. The Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) has confirmed these concerns. It has warned that Pakistan will be close to complete water scarcity by 2025. According to UNICEF, by 2025, half of the world’s population may live in areas facing water scarcity.
As many as 700 million people could be displaced by severe water scarcity by 2030.
Pakistan receives 145 million feet of water from its rivers every year. In this, we need 12 MAF for domestic use and 8 MAF for industrial needs. Even if we increase it by 50% keeping future needs in mind, a total of 30 MAF is sufficient for our domestic and industrial needs. 104 MAF is lost to agriculture annually. The biggest problem in the agriculture sector is that water is being used in an outdated way, i.e. 5 to 6 times more water is used than what is needed. are Water storage capacity in Pakistan is 4 times less than the international standard but fortunately, nature has blessed us with Aquifer, we have an underground water storage capacity of 3000 MAF.
Currently, around 30 million Pakistanis are facing the problem of clean drinking water. According to WHO, a person needs 50 to 100 litres of water per day, but the people of Orangi Town in Karachi get 70 litres a day. If you shower for 10 minutes, 20 to 25 gallons are used. 20 to 25 gallons means 80 to 100 litres of water. Many people in Orangi Town do not have enough water in a day. At present, the population of Karachi is around 3 crores which requires at least 600 to 700 million gallons per day but you will be surprised to know that 400 million gallons are provided daily in Karachi. But despite the existence of rivers, springs, underground water and glaciers in Pakistan, what is the cause of water shortage? This is because we cannot store excess water and are wasting water by dumping it in the sea. We get large amounts of water from glaciers and rains, but because we don’t have dams, we waste 10 trillion gallons of water every year by dumping it in the ocean. This is so much water that it can fill 3 to 4 big dams like Mangla and this water can be used not only for Karachi but for the whole of Pakistan. Another big problem we are facing due to the lack of dams is that we can store water for a maximum of 30 days of use in our country which is very less.
Following are some of the causes of water scarcity. Inefficient management ‘Unequal access and distribution, growing population, deforestation, progressive industrialization, lack of storage capacity and climate risk make water management a difficult task. There has been a significant decrease due to which we are facing a water crisis. Another reason is the increasing population which is considered an important cause of the water crisis. With the increase in population, the use of water is also increasing, due to which water scarcity is increasing. And the main reason, which we often ignore, is the excessive use of water in agriculture. We use twice as much water as we need, and currently, 97% of fresh water in Pakistan is used in agriculture, which accounts for 18% of Pakistan’s GDP. Poor agricultural choices, flood irrigation, lack of hybrid seeding and poor water management are putting a heavy burden on water resources.
Although water is a boon to human life, it also signifies prosperity, health, and growth. Of course, mismanagement of water means mismanagement of life. As Thomas Fuller rightly said, “We don’t know the value of water until the well is dry.” focuses on World Water Day is celebrated to make people aware of the scarcity of water so that efforts can be made to conserve water.
Finally, the government of Pakistan should take this issue seriously and we as individuals should understand this issue and do our best to conserve and conserve water so that we do not suffer from water shortages in the future.