LAHORE, Dec 5: The Punjab irrigation department is preparing a comprehensive report on aquifer depletion and groundwater quality for presentation to the government early next year.

A land based water rate formula is also under study.

Over a half a million tuebwells in the Punjab are drawing around 34 million acre feet of sweet water from the aquifer every year while the recharge from the Indus and 36 canals is only 10 million acre feet per annum. The phenomenon has been continuing for the past three years due to the dry spell.

There was a 51 per cent shortage of water for the Rabi crop last year. It was met by the supply of sweet water pumped out by the tuebwells. The aquifer is depleting due to pumping out of triple the quantity of water being recharged annually.

The irrigation department is studying the quality and depth of underground water at 4,000 points in the province. It is being checked at every 10 kilometres. The soil condition is also being studied.

The department is also studying a land based formula for the recovery of water rate as the water charges cannot be recovered from the farmers in accordance with the consumption of canal water due to defective water rate formula. Big landlords pay less despite consumption of large quantities of water. The irrigation officials pass on the water rate burden from the big landholder to the small one. The revenue of the department is also affected due to the entry of less water consuming crops instead of the crops consuming large quantities of water in the survey reports to facilitate payment of water charges at reduced rates.

The computation of water charges on the basis of size of the landholdings is expected to ensure recovery of water charges in accordance with the actual water consumption. It would also put an end to the practice of billing the small landholders for larger water consumption by the big landholders. The formula would also provide for recovery of more water charges from larger consumers like the owners of fish farms.