ISLAMABAD: The Federal and Provincial Governments are likely to sign a Water Charter aimed at dealing with current and future water issues with consensus and developing new reservoirs, well informed sources told Business Recorder.
The Water Charter would be signed in the next CCI meeting or a separate ceremony, as deemed appropriate.
The decision was taken at recent meeting of Council of Common Interests (CCI), presided over by Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi whereas Chief Ministers of Sindh, KPK and Balochistan represented their provinces while Punjab was represented by Finance Minister Dr Ayesha Ghaus Pasha.
The sources said the CCI was informed that the Council in its meeting held on November 24, 2017, had set up a committee headed by the Deputy Chairman Planning Commission, comprising of Minister for Power Division, Federal Secretaries of Water Resources, Planning, Development and Reform, Power Division and Chief Secretaries of all the provinces for further examination of the policy.
The National Water Policy recognizes the need for the sector to receive at least 10 percent of Federal PSDP gradually increasing it to 20 percent by 2030. The provincial governments are urged to also increase expenditure for this sector as total allocation of Rs 145 billion, i.e. 7 percent of the combined federal and provincial development budget for 2017-18, is entirely inadequate.
Stressing the need for a National Water Policy, the Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission, Sartaj Aziz informed the CCI that due priority has never been assigned to the formulation of a National Water Policy during the last seven decades, adding that all the South Asian countries had water policies covering their interests in water sector.
Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah stated that he had convened a meeting of National Water Policy on March 19, 2018 and conveyed the concerns of the Government of Sindh in writing to Planning Commission. However, these points had not been incorporated in the draft of NWP.
Secretary Water Resources, Khawaja Shumail clarified that the draft of NWP was finalised in consultation with the representatives of the provincial governments including Secretary Irrigation Department, Sindh and reservations of the Government of Sindh were duly incorporated in the policy in letter and spirit. He added that all the participants had signed the NWP in a meeting held under the chairmanship of Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission last month. Sindh Chief Minister, however, expressed reservations over the document and impressed upon the CCI the need for incorporating nine reservations in the policy.
Chief Secretary Punjab, Capt Zahid Saeed (retired) stated that the changes in NWP, proposed by the Sindh Chief Minister in the document, have already been signed by the representative of the Sindh government, and not shared with his government.
The Sindh Chief Minister explained his reservations on different clauses of proposed in NWP one by one which were responded to by the Deputy Chairman Planning Commission and Secretary Water Resources.
While discussing the composition of National Water Council, the Minister for Planning, Development and Reforms, Ahsan Iqbal proposed that the National Water Commission may include Federal Minister for Planning, Federal Minister for Finance and Chairman Pakistan Engineering Council (PEC), two academicians and three experts as members to cater to technical requirements. Similarly, the steering committee may include Federal Secretaries of Planning and Finance as members.
The prime minister expressed his concern over the present precarious water situation in Pakistan. A Water Charter for Pakistan was also deliberated upon in the CCI. The provincial governments, however, sought time to study and finalise their comments. Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission assured them that concerns of provinces, if any, will be addressed.
“There is a dire need to develop a national consensus on this critical issue,” the prime minister added.
After detailed discussion, the CCI expressed a consensus on the summary submitted by the Ministry of Water Resources to adopt the National Water Policy, keeping in view the changes in climate patterns and rapidly depleting water resources of the country.
It was decided that the proposed policy will be brought before the next CCI meeting, after incorporating suggestions from the provinces, for final approval.
The meeting also decided that the provincial governments will send amendments to the proposed Water Charter, if any, to the Deputy Chairman, Planning Commission,
The Water Charter would be signed in the next CCI meeting or during a separate ceremony as deemed appropriate.
When contacted, a senior official told this scribe that National Water Policy is a consensus document duly signed by the provincial representatives, adding that provinces have sought very slight changes in the draft National Policy which have been incorporated and the final draft has been shared with the provinces.
The official maintained that the draft policy which was considered by the CCI on March 27, 2018, was duly signed by the provincial governments. “As we receive the final draft of National Water Policy from provinces it will be sent to the CCI for approval,” he added.
Main targets proposed for 2018-2030 can be summarized as follows: (i) reduction of 33 percent in the 46 MAF river flows that are lost in conveyance, through accelerated programme of water course lining specially in saline or semi saline areas; (ii) in order to augment the dwindling irrigation deliveries into the existing canal systems on account of ever decreasing existing storage capacity of Mangla and Tarbela due to sedimentation and to develop new cultivated area on canal irrigated water, the existing water storage capacity of 14 MAF must be increased by immediately starting construction of the Diamer-Basha Dam Project having 6.4 MAF live storage on which consensus of all the federating units has already been achieved in 2009 at CCI level; Mohmand Dam with live capacity of 0.676 MAF and other countrywide small and medium dams be built having cumulative live storage capacity of at least 2 MAF, in the next 12 years ie up to year 2030; (iii) increase of at least 30 percent in the efficiency of water use by producing “more crop per drop”. This will require use of new technologies like drip and sprinkler irrigation and more realistic water pricing policy. The present average rate of water charges per acre is only one fourth of what the farmer pays for tube-well water in the ground water market; and (iv) real-time monitoring of river flows by IRSA must be ensured through telemetric monitoring to maintain transparent water accounting system and to check the increasing trend of unaccounted-for water in the Indus System of Rivers and this task must be completed before end 2021. —MUSHTAQ GHUMMAN
