THIS refers to a report (June 12) which says there is just one month’s water supply left for Islamabad. There have been periodic articles and news over the last few years of our dwindling water resources not only in Islamabad but all over the country.

Experts predict that in less than five years at our present trajectory, Pakistan will be facing a full-blown water crisis, our food growing capacity will diminish, and potable water will become scarce to the point that even drinking water will be available to only those who have the means to buy it, leave alone for washing.

In Islamabad, with some sectors already having gone dry, one would think CDA would have enforced some water rationing and strictures against wastage and banned further construction of housing till a solution is found. But, sadly, it is just the opposite.

Drive down any sector and you will find servants happily sloshing water through pressure hoses washing cars and driveways. Water mains leak where youngsters happily frolic under these free showers. New housing schemes are being announced and even the army has started building housing in E-10 sector. There is talk of shifting the entire army headquarters to Islamabad.

On the supply side, 70 out of the 160 tube wells are out of order. Simly dam and Khanpur dam are running dry, while Chirah dam plan has been shelved to sell land to housing schemes all along. We are talking about bringing water from the river Indus to Islamabad as if talking about this will be a solution.

The distance from the Indus at its closest to Islamabad is a minimum of about 60km and this is over land which is mostly privately owned and thickly populated.

Water in the Indus river is also reducing with every passing day besides the fact that those downstream will scream murder if even a cusec is taken away. So with all this staring us in the face those at the helm are blithely carrying on with nary a thought as to where we are headed.

Javed Khan Tareen

Islamabad

Published in Dawn, June 25th, 2017