The Indus River, once the lifeline of Sindh, now flows more like a political chessboard, where the central government and the Punjab government play their strategic moves while Sindh watches its fields turn into deserts.
The 1991 Water Apportionment Accord, supposed to be a contract of fair distribution of water, has instead become mere a script for Sindh’s death, with the “Green Pakistan Initiative”. More like a dying initiative for Sindhi people, with the beginning of the so-called strategic initiative for Sindh surely has issued death certificates. Sindh, which strongly condemned the construction of Kalabagh Dam, has once again stood against construction of six canals on the Indus River, with thousands of people rallying and protesting on the streets.
The 1991 Water Apportionment Accord allocated 48.76 MAF of water to Sindh, yet, Sindh consistently faces 40 to 45 percent water shortage, because the construction of dams, link canals, and mismanagement by the federal government have significantly reduced Indus flow.
However, Sindh is a lower riparian province in Pakistan because of that water flow is controlled by upper riparian. According to Sindh Irrigation Secretary, Zerif Khoro, the province utilized 3.560 MAF from April 1 to May 20 against an allocated 4.645 MAF representing 23 percent shortage. As Sindh contributes 32 percent of Pakistan’s total GDP and 80 percent of Sindh irrigation depends upon water, so ultimately further shortage or any diversion in water would deal a serious blow to Sindh’s survival.
Furthermore, it remains ambiguous what federal government and Punjab authorities aim to achieve when Sindh already faces unfair distribution of water. Area being the most vulnerable to floods and droughts, with construction of additional strategic canals on Indus River, would exacerbate inter-provincial disparities and hatred. If the existing water distribution is unjust and unfair, how would one expect further infrastructural projects be just and fair. So, the question arises; is the goal to develop the region or to deprive Sindh further from its legal and rightful resources. Unfortunately, unavailability of water throws Sindh into a trap that prevent it from having its enshrined due share in 1991 Accord.
The province frequently experiences extreme flood almost every year, as exemplified by the devastating flood in 2022, which completely desolated 4.4 million-Acre land in Sindh. Moreover, approximately 7300 km of canal infrastructure was severely affected, with some area entirely disappearing from the map. According to few official reports, the capacity of Indus Delta, holding fresh water, has dramatically declined to just 8 percent that depicts the severe consequences of unfair distribution of water. In this situation where people in one province are suffering from acute water shortage, catalyzed by unfair distribution, mistrust, and floods-how one can even justify irrigating 1.2 million acres of barren land at the cost of 12 million acres of already prosper, greener, and fertile land in Sindh.
Notably, it is important to understand that the failure of such canals is quite observable and measurable, exemplified by India’s construction of Indira Gandi canal in Rajasthan; which has failed miserably. No one has ever considered the construction of canals in deserted areas, without conducting a proper study on it and assessing its potential consequences on the non-traditional security of all the provinces.
According to Dr. Hassan Abbas, an irrigation expert and founding chairman of ZikZAK, constructing canals in deserted areas is misguided and misinterpreted approach by our so-called experts. During an interview, with AJ TV Official, he constantly emphasized that even corporate farming is not sustainable, as it relies on Drip Irrigation system that uses pumps to transport water into sand. However, while transporting water, the presence of sand in water causes nozzles blockages and leakages, further complicating the proposed irrigation process.
Unfortunately, these sort of erroneous and short-sighted policies have propelled Pakistan into acute water shortage countries list. Such an instance of erroneous planning is explained by “Alloys Michel” in his book “The Indus Rivers”, he explains that during the negotiations of Indus Water Treaty (IWT), Pakistan was suggested not to build dams, as Indus River System naturally operates on the run-of-the-river system. However, without understanding the geography and natural flow of the river, Pakistan proceeded to construct dams, because India was constructing.
One of the largest dams in Pakistan, Tarbela, stores approximately 12 MAF of water every year, with 6 MAF reserved for winter and the remaining 6 MAF for the Summer. Before the monsoon season comes, it stores approximately 2 MAF of water, crucial for Sindh. Because monsoon arrives there earlier than other regions. However, the blockage of water at the crucial time highlights how Pakistan’s largest dam has failed to ensure equitable allocation of water.
Decentralization of power is crucial to ensuring that dominant provinces cease to exploit weaker provinces. Only through a positive and realistic approach, can we effectively address our challenges and work towards a greener, safer, and more prosperous Pakistan.
Further construction of canals and upstream diversion of water will interrupt water distribution, catalyzing water scarcity in Sindh and threatening its agriculture. Sindh is already suffering from extreme water shortage, which is evident in its three largest canals including, Sukkur Barrage, Guddu Barrage, and Kotri Barrage.
The Sukkur Barrage located in Sindh’s Sukkur city, 3 miles below the Sukkur George on the Indus River. An official ten-days update by the Sindh Irrigation Department, recorded a water shortfall of 58.35 percent in March, which is an eye-opening number, alarming the disastrous consequences to come in future.
In addition to that, almost all canals have experienced significant water shortfalls. The Akram Wah, originating from Kotri Barrage, recorded a 68.3 percent water shortfall. Meanwhile the Dadu Canal received just 500 cusecs of water, far below its allocated 4200 cusecs in the Water Apportionment Accord, resulting in an 88.1 percent shortage. Additionally, the Begari Sindh Feeder faced a 20 percent shortfall, whereas Ghotki Feeder recorded a 9 percent shortfall,
Major political parties, including Qaumi Awami Tehreek, Grand Democratic Alliance, and Sindh Taraqi Pasand Party have completely opposed the construction of six canals on the Indus. And their opposition has been manifested through peaceful protests and long marches, against the proposed “Green Pakistan Initiative”, held in several villages and cities such as Darbello, Naushero Feroze, Sujawal, Hyderabad, Karachi and many others, led by locals.
The federal government must recognize the provincial rights enshrined in the 18th Amendment which upholds the general principle of provincial autonomy. It is necessary that the government should listen to the voices of people rather than disregard their serious concerns, otherwise people may resist.
Instead of diverting water upstream, the central goal must be the revision of the National Water Policy (NWP) to ensure the fair and just distribution of water. Additionally, the government must design and implement strict laws on over-extraction of ground water, which contributes to the scarcity of water in Pakistan.
Rather than constructing additional canals, a more effective approach would be to develop a cost-effective irrigation system that utilizes rain water for cultivation. The rainwater harvesting system is widely followed by countries such as Bangladesh and Nepal, and can offer sustainable solutions for Pakistan’s agriculture problems as well.
Decentralization of power is crucial to ensuring that dominant provinces cease to exploit weaker provinces. Only through a positive and realistic approach, can we effectively address our challenges and work towards a greener, safer, and more prosperous Pakistan.
