IT is quite alarming that the per capita water availability in the country has decreased considerably due to rapid growth in population and depleting water storage capacity of the reservoirs because of the natural phenomenon of sedimentation.

It is also a matter of great concern that Pakistan can store only 10 per cent of its annual river flow against the world’s average of 40pc because no major storage facility has been developed after the Tarbela Dam.

The Kalabagh Dam can be constructed in just six years, and would generate up to 3,600MW power. It would be able to store as much as seven million acre feet (MAF) of water. If the project goes ahead, Punjab and Sindh would both get substantially more water for irrigation purposes.

The government should build dams so that the country may have the capacity to store water and use it prudently. If we still do not make the move, rains will continue to cause floods and they will continue to cause widescale misery. There is no point ignoring the threat looming over us.

Uzma Maryam
Karachi

Published in Dawn, November 25th, 2022