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I remember how in my childhood I would come home from school and being thirsty after a long walk go straight to the water tap and drink large amounts of water directly from the tap.

In those days it was quite safe to do that as the water was treated by the concerned department before it reached our homes. Now there is hardly any water that comes directly into the tap.

Presently, most of the people in Karachi and especially in the affluent areas are drinking water that comes in water tankers a species no one had heard of in the early days of Pakistan.

These water tankers have increased in number in proportion to the high rises that have popped up with increasing frequency in this bustling metropolis. Water is big business now and this can be confirmed by the ever-increasing prices of water supplied through tankers.

In most high-rise buildings water charges occupy the highest amount among the monthly maintenance charges charged by the management committees from the residents.

Our honeymoon with the water tankers might be nearing an end as it has been predicted that Pakistan will be facing acute water shortage as will other countries of the world due to climate change and other factors.

Already, there are disagreements on water distribution and high-level talks are being held to resolve the issue. Globally, the crisis is growing with presently close to 7 million people not having access to water, which amounts to one in ten people.

Top amongst those facing water scarcity are Qatar, Israel, Lebanon, Iran, Jordan, Libya, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Eritrea, the United Arab Emirates, San Marino, Bahrain, India, Pakistan, Turkmenistan, Oman and Botswana.

In contrast, there are countries which are fortunate enough to have large reservoirs of water. These include Brazil, which has the highest volume of renewable fresh water resources, totaling approximately 8,233 cubic kilometers.

The freshwater in Brazil accounts for approximately 12% of the world’s fresh water resources. Then there is Lake Baikal, in Russia, which is the largest and deepest freshwater lake in the world.

Baikal holds up to approximately 1/5th of the entire fresh water in the world while Russia has a total 4,508 cubic kilometers of fresh water resources which are gradually being reduced due to climate change.

Canada is known for the many lakes that provide fresh water to the country as well as hours of activity for those who love to fish. It is also typical in Canada to utilize the frozen lakes as skating rings during winter.

The Rideau Canal in the heart of Capital Ottawa serves as the longest skating ring in the world in winter. These canals and lakes provide drinking water to over 8 million people and support agriculture in the country.

You can’t forget the USA when you mention Canada who are neighbors. The volume of renewable fresh water resources in the US is approximately 3,069 cubic kilometers.

Majority of freshwater in the United States comes from lakes. Other fresh water sources are rivers, ponds, and reservoirs. There are thousands of lakes in the US, including the world-famous Great Lakes.

As the countries with the largest reservoirs of fresh water are getting worried due to acute problems generated by climate change we in Pakistan have to be extra careful and specially the residents of Karachi who should awake from the dream of being forever supplied by tankers without a worry in the world.

While Pakistan has significant water resources, including the Indus River and glaciers, the country faces challenges in water availability and management due to factors like population growth, climate change, and inefficient irrigation practices. We in Karachi have over the years adopted habits that are not only water consuming but water wasting as well. One prominent among these is getting your car washed every morning.

There is hardly any household and specially one with a driver that does not wash cars every day with water flowing freely and announcing our devil-may-care attitude towards water conservation.

Such wasteful luxuries are almost nearing their end and it will be advisable for all of us to heed early warnings and adopt a more responsible attitude towards the use of water.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2025

Zia Ul Islam Zuberi

The writer is a well-known columnist & Head of Corporate Communication at Nutshell Communications

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