Supply to some sectors of Islamabad from towers like these has dwindled in the summer. — Dawn

ISLAMABAD: Tahir Mehmood, a resident of Sector I-10 is among thousands of residents of the federal capital, facing water shortages since the summer hit its peak.

“Sometimes water is supplied after three days, for only 15 minutes. Residents have to call for CDA water tankers which are not available most of the time and in the end, we are forced to pay for private tankers. When residents pay bills, uninterrupted water supply should be ensured,” he said.

Although this year the capital and adjoining areas received ample rain, raising water levels in reservoirs which supply water to residential areas, residents continued to face shortages.

A CDA water management official, requesting anonymity, said that E-7 is the only sector where water demands are met, while those living in F sectors are better off as well. According to the official, residents of G and I Sectors are facing the worst shortages. “The problem exists mainly because of electricity load shedding and most complaints come from Sectors G-6 and G-11. Problems are also faced by residents of sectors in the I series as here water is pumped from tube wells,” he said.

The official explained that there are tube wells in the National Park Area which pump underground water and send it to the Water Reservoir Hub at Pona Faqiran. Once this water is filtered it is supplied to I Sectors.

The situation in rural and suburban areas such as Bharakahu is even worse. A resident of Bharakahu, Ahmed Ali told Dawn that no water is supplied in his area. “We depend on tube wells and some people take water connections illegally from the CDA’s main supply line coming from Simly Dam,” he said.

Some years ago, a reservoir was built by the Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT) administration in Bharakahu at a cost of over Rs200 million, which would supply water to the residents of rural areas. However, the CDA failed to fill this reservoir with water from Simly dam and it remains dry.

According to CDA documents, all available water resources have been tapped and there is a need to develop new water resources to cope with increasing demand. Shahid Sohail, CDA Member Engineering, told Dawn that Islamabad’s population is growing at a drastic rate and there is a need to look for new sources of water as paucity of potable water is likely to increase in the future. “Currently, the CDA is supplying water to the residents of the capital from Simly and Khanpur Dams and from over 200 tube wells,” he said.

Mr Sohail said that the CDA has resources to supply 70 million gallons a day while the demand is at 100 gallons a day. “Efforts are being made to get water from the Indus River system,” he said.

Another CDA official, requesting anonymity, blamed Wapda for the shortage of water in I Sectors. “Load shedding makes it impossible for water to be pumped from the tubewells,” he said.

He also said that CDA must find alternative sources of water as shortages are expected to get worse in the coming days.

Wastage of water

Another major factor contributing to water scarcity are the old water pipelines laid in the 1960s and according to some officials, 40 percent of water goes to waste. “By preventing wastage of water, we can control shortages to some extent,” an official said.

Filtration plants

Availability of clean drinking water is another major problem faced by the residents of the city. There are close to 30 filtration plants installed in Islamabad, however, a number of these are no longer functional. CDA Member Engineering claimed the CDA was working to repair these plants and will soon make them operational. “We are also mulling over the option of handing over the responsibility of filtration plants to the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR),” he said.

It is relevant to note here that in year 2013, PCWR in its report revealed that out of 33 plants, 27 were providing unsafe water to residents.

Project for acquiring water from Indus River system

According to Shahid Sohail, Member Engineering, if implemented, this project will meet the needs of the residents of Islamabad and Rawalpindi for many decades.

On the other hand, the Sindh government has rejected the proposal. However, Shahid Sohial is optimistic that the federal government will convince the Sindh government to agree to this proposal. “This project is only sustainable solution,” he said, adding that in the coming days, the CDA would again take up this issue before Economic Affairs Division.

Published in Dawn, June 29th, 2015

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