Measures required to tackle possible water crisis: WAPDA

ISLAMABAD: The Water and Power Development Authority (WAPDA) on Thursday said immediate measures were required to tackle possible water crisis, ARY News reported.

“The country has 10 percent ability to conserve water, while it is 40 percent in other parts of the world,” said the WAPDA spokesman in a statement.

He said by 2030 the ability to preserve water would be increased up to 10 million acre feet. He said short term, mid-term and long term plans had been designed for water conservation.

The spokesperson said the WAPDA was working on different projects to enhance water condition in the country. He said the WAPDA was the largest organization for development of water resources.

He said availability of water in Pakistan had reached 908 cubic meter annually.

Terming ineffective policies and mismanagement root causes of water scarcity in the country, President Dr. Arif Alvi on March 20 said that Pakistan had been blessed with plenty of surface and sub-surface water resources.

The president said this during a presentation by the Secretary, Water Resources Irfan Ali and Chairman WAPDA Lt. Gen. (R) Muzammil Hussain at the Aiwan-e-Sadr, Islamabad.

According to a statement released from his office, President Dr. Arif Alvi said that Pakistan had the largest contiguous irrigation system in the world and added that the great Indus river system had historically been the lifeline of the Indus valley civilization.