Pakistan Yearly Wastes 38 mcf Water Due To Inadequate Planning: Experts

News Desk

Islamabad: The country wastes 38 million cubic feet (mcf) of water each year owing to inadequate planning and strategy; therefore, the water experts emphasised the necessity to build new reservoirs in order to utilise water resources.

The experts made the remarks during a lecture organised by the Chair, Lawfare and International Law at the Islamabad Policy Research Institute (IPRI) on the theme ‘Indus Waters Treaty 1960: Way Forward for Pakistan’.

In order to minimise pilferage, Indus Waters Pakistan Commissioner Syed Muhammad Mehr Ali Shah emphasised the necessity for more water reservoirs. He elucidated that if any initiative undertaken by India was objected to by Pakistan, then until the dispute was resolved, even if the project was completed, it would not attain any legal status.

Ali Shah stated that the Indus Waters Treaty of 1960 was drafted with an awareness of the delicate nature of potential conflicts over time, and as a result, it included procedures and methods for resolving irritants amicably.

Muhammad Mehr claimed that Pakistan has the competence and aptitude to scientifically monitor the water flow trends coming from India and is aware of its requirements owing to the usage of contemporary technology.

The Commissioner also pointed out that the exchange of data between the two countries is a fundamental part of the agreement and observed that the treaty is organic in essence.

On average, Pakistan receives 171 mcf of water on an area of 1.16 mlnsq km. Some of the major infrastructures erected by Pakistan are the Tarbella, Mangla and Chashma dams, and the country is home to 18 barrages. The total hydropower generation is to the tune of 9389 MW.

In order to deal with the realities of climate change, Commissioner Shah emphasised the necessity for a countervailing approach and urged that adequate actions are required in the legal, economic, political, and environmental domains. The goal is to give Pakistan water security, Ali added.