Pakistan is moving fast towards a "Water Scarce Country" due to combined effects of population growth, increasing crop water and industrial demand, decreasing surface water reservoirs and diminishing groundwater shortage.
This was stated by Professor Dr Bashir Ahmad, Vice Chancellor, UAF while addressing an inaugural session of national seminar on "Water control in tertiary irrigation channels- issues and remedies" here at old senate hall on Saturday morning.
Professor Dr Bashir Ahmad expressed his concerns over the situation of rapid water shortage as per capita water availability has come down from 5,000 m3 in 1950 to about 11,00 m3 in recent years "this situation was just marginally above the threshold limit of water scarcity ie 1,000 m3 per capita, which is shrinking further if additional surface and groundwater resources are not developed" he added.
Highlighting the worst effects of constrained water availability, the vice chancellor said that water shortage leads to less energy, less industrial output, limited jobs, less tube well operation, reduced agriculture, less food and farm income. He stressed the need for utilising every means to conserve this precious resource and use it with a high degree of efficiency.
He said that the control and management of water at tertiary part of the irrigation system has been a challenge for the past three and half decades because of its extensive nature which is responsible for water losses to the tune of 40percent of the flows delivered to the watercourse network.
Director General Water Management Directorate Mr Mushtaq Ahmad Gill in his keynote address said that effective water control structures such as round panel outlets in conjunction with improvement and lining options however, poor quality and deterioration of thousands of control structures installed at tertiary channels/watercourses tend to offset the effectiveness of the lining programs in achieving the goals of conserving water losses.
Professor Dr M. Rafiq Chaudhry Chairman, Department of Irrigation & Drainage highlighting the objectives of the seminar said that at tertiary level, the control on irrigation water is primarily exercised through installation of the control structures, generally known as field outlets or Nacca and partly by the watercourse lining and improvement activities by reducing water losses in the watercourses and fields.