Water crisis in Pakistan

Pakistan ranks third amongst countries facing water shortages, according to an international monetary fund (IMF) report.


The Indus River System Authority (IRSA) on Sunday issued warnings of a looming water crisis in Pakistan, as only 2,20,000 cusec acres of water is available in reserves to meet the growing water demand in the country.
According to IRSA, the water inflow in the rivers of the country was measured at 1,12,900 cusecs, while river outflow remained at 1,19,300 cusecs. The authority said that a total of 1,23,600 cusecs of water was being provided to the provinces.


After the Indus Basin Treaty with India, water of only two rivers i.e. Jhelum and Chenab is available to Pakistan while the availability of water in the remaining three rivers i.e. Ravi, Sutlej and Bias depends on the will of India.

The construction of dams and barrages by India over River Chenab and River Jhelum in violation of the Indus Basin Treaty created the problem of water shortage for Pakistan which is becoming more and more severe with the passage of time. According to the UNO Report, Pakistan is at the 7th position in the list of countries, which are facing water crisis. Presently, Pakistan has a surface water of 153 MAF and underground water resources of only 24 MAF and Pakistan may face water shortage of 33 MAF during the year, 2025.

“The severity of the issue can be gauged  by the fact that at the time of its independence in 1947 Pakistan was a water affluent country with five thousand cubic meters per citizen of clean water . Today , there is less then 1 thousand cubic meters of clean water per citizen, which is equivalent to that of the scarce country Ethiopia.

A grim picture of things to come was drawn by the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources (PCRWR) when it fired a warning shot that the country will run dry by the year 2025 if the government remains inactive.

Agriculture is the backbone of this country with more than 21 per cent of the GDP coming from the sector. Of the country’s exports, 70pc are from the agriculture sector that depends upon water.

Water problems was settled and IWT was regarded as a remarkable example of conflict resolution yet the recent Indian intentions of building “chain of dams” on Pakistani (western) rivers have once again posed a serious challenge for Pakistan. Further, UN reports are suggesting that Pakistan is going to become a water scarce country in near future. In this premise, this essay intends to highlight the reasons of water shortage in Pakistan, its implications and a proposed way out.