Water: The Dwindling Lifeline

Asem Mustafa Awan

Islamabad: Water represents a lifeline for the world and in Pakistan, this is dwindling with every hour.

The filtration plant serves many people in the locality as clean drinking water is a rare commodity in Pakistan and it is believed over 80 per cent of the population is denied this necessity that has become a luxury.

With receding water levels and no new reservoirs, the time is not far when there will be a desert, thanks to policymakers who have made sure that Pakistan should stay unstable and never flourish as ideas that are projected are contrary to the wishes of the masses.

The uproar on dual nationals making it to the Parliament and government officials who turn a deaf ear to public hue and cry, this photo by Khurram Butt speak a volume about this national commitment.

The water filtration plant, located somewhere in Rawalpindi Cantonment Board’s jurisdiction, is supposed to serve many has no taps and is locked, why this has happened has many stories and to begin with, the first thing that comes to mind, somebody in need of taps stole them away but the question arises this facility is for masses and there is a representative from the Cantonment Board that opens and shuts the facility on certain times.

What happened to that man?

Is he sacked?

Is he dead?

Is he a ghost employee like many thousands who plunder the national exchequer without any remorse?

Pakistan [Land of the pure] which is very ‘poor’ now has the public given the very least priority by the ‘state’ and those who control the state are busy doing things that are over and above the law.

The statistics as in water borne diseases should be an eye-opener with Hepatitis ‘A to Z’ taking its toll on the poor who have very little means to survive.

The population dying slowly with the disease has the majority living below the poverty line, and the medical cover comes away after.

The filth around the filtration plant depicts that it has not been cleaned for ages and to seek an answer about the filters will result in an unending quest where one office will refer to another and finally a number that is never picked or either disconnected owing to non-payment of bills.

This plant also depicts the national character regrettably which is unclean as those who made it to the top came from the bottom and have no empathy for people who were once their own who pushed them to top hoping that they will look after them as if they were one of their own.

Sadly this never happens and the current chaos gripping Pakistan is an ample proof.

The writer is a journalist based in Islamabad and writes on a wide range of issues.

Photo Credit: Khurram Butt

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