As many as 90 percent water supply schemes in rural areas were not based on holistic approach which had affected the water quality over the years, said Punjab Minister for Local Government Law and Parliamentary Affairs, Mohammed Basharat Raja on Monday.
He was addressing a seminar on 'Safe Water Supply in Punjab' held by department of Local Government and Rural Development of Punjab in collaboration with Unicef.
Chief Provincial Office Unicef Punjab Dr Ayman Abulaban was also present on the occasion besides a number of experts and Nazims of 'tehsils' and districts level.
Basharat Raja regretted that due to lack of proper planning, research as well as preventive measures, there was wide-scale incidence of contamination of drinking water.
The minister appreciated that Unicef had taken a number of public health oriented projects and government alone could assume the huge responsibility of social sector development due to resource constraint. He assured of full support from his department to deal with issue on hand.
Chief Provincial Officer Unicef Punjab Dr Ayman Abulban while addressing the gathering said the agency had been working at federal as well as provincial level to gauge the arsenic contamination of ground water and added that, "Our knowledge of the problem is yet to improve in various important fronts to help in making a difference in the province and the country."
Junaid Kamal Ahmad from NGO sector speaking on regional prospective and experience from South Asia focused on findings from the arsenic issue management in Bangladesh.
He said it took five to ten years for arsenic to greatly affect health and called for effective measures from the government in this regard.
He appreciated that Pakistan had a well-footed local government system, which could be mobilised and relied upon to deal with problems' pertaining to drinking water contamination.
Dr Mohammed Akram Kahloon Chairman Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources' PCRWR operating under Ministry of Science and Technology apprised that a survey was in progress under which village level testing was being done in areas of DG Khan, Layyah, Muzaffargarh, Sargodha and Jhang districts where 9,000 water sources would be tested for arsenic contamination.
He said low cost filters developed by PCRWR should be distributed among the people of the affected areas.
Other speakers presented research findings of water quality in Punjab undertaken over the last few years but being made public for the first time ever.
Lieutenant Colonel Muhammad Shahbaz (Retd) Director General Local Government presented a welcome address on the occasion. The moot would constitute a technical committee on Tuesday with a mandate to come up with an action plan.