Pakistan Studies

Presentation On:
Water Resources of Pakistan

Submitted By:

Group No. 3
Group Leader:
Saad Amir
Speakers:
Muhammad Ahsan Qureshi, Kamran Ali,
Shabbir Ahmed Qureshi & Syed Husnain

BSCS 1st - Semester

(Morning)

Submitted To:

Sir Maj.Khalil
Asst.Professor
Faculty. of IT & Engineering

Timing: 12:15-13:30

Date of Presentation:
10-12-2012

National University of Modern Languages, Islamabad

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 Contents
Sr.No. Subjects Responsibility Page No.
1 Introduction 03
2 Historical Perspective Saad Amir 03
3 Catchments of Indus river System 04
4 Water Resources of Pakistan 04
a. Rainfall
b. Glaciers
c. Rivers and Dams M.Ahsan Qureshi
d. Surface Water Resources
e. Ground Water Resources
f. Soon after the initiation of the SCARP program
g. Future of water resources and needs

5 Development potential and future strategies 07

a. Improve surface storage capacity
b. Conjunctive use of ground water
c. Increase the efficiency of existing system Kamran Ali

6 Water Demand and Availability 08

a. The Irrigation System of Pakistan
7 Conservation of Water Resources in Pakistan 09
a. Water Conservation Strategy Shabbir Ahmed Qureshi
8 Indus Water Treaty between Pak and India 10
a. Provisions
b. History and background Syed Husnain
c. World Bank involvement
d. Treaty provisions

9 Strategic Analysis 13
10 Conclusion Saad Amir 14
11 Bibliographic Search 15

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 Abstract
Water is an essential element for survival of living things. It is vital factor for economic
development for augmenting growth of agriculture and industry. The presentation analyzes the
water resources and conservation strategy of Pakistan. Since independence our country
constructed only two big dams i.e. Tarbela and Mangla. The sedimentation condition in these
dams is also declining the storage capacity. The study indicates that due to stagnant water
resources the per capita water availability is decreasing at an alarming rate. The study highlights
the proposed and ongoing water projects. Finally the presentation also articulates the water
conservation strategy for Pakistan in order to fulfill the future requirements.

1. Introduction:

Water is one of the basic necessities of life. The usage of water can be divided in three broad
categories i.e. domestic consumption, commercial/industrial use and usage for land irrigation.
Water is also important element of the world‟s ecological system. God has gifted Pakistan with
abundant water resources, with rivers flowing down the Himalayas and Karakoram heights from
the world‟s largest glaciers and free and unique bounty for this land. Pakistan is basically an
agrarian economy. Out of its total geographical area of 79.61 million hectares, cultivated area is
22.05 million hectares. The total area under irrigation is 19.02 million hectares (Agricultural
Statistics of Pakistan 2005-06). Irrigated land supplies more than 90 percent of agricultural
production and most of the country food. Agriculture sector is regarded as the backbone of the
Pakistan‟s economy. It contributes 25 percent of the GDP. About more than 50 percent labour
force is employed in this sector. Agriculture sector is also the major user of water and its
consumption will continue to dominate water requirement. Similarly for industrial development
main source of energy is hydropower which is generated by dint of water stored in big dams and
reservoirs. Therefore the importance of the water for the survival of our economy cannot be
denied.
The objective of this presentation is to analyze in-depth the water resources and
conservation strategies for Pakistan.

2. Historical Perspective:

The Almighty Allah has gifted Pakistan with abundant water resources with water flowing down
the Himalayas and Karakorum heights from the world's largest glaciers, a free and unique bounty
of nature for this land of alluvial plains. As a result of this natural resource, today we have the
world's marvelous and the largest contiguous irrigation system that currently irrigates over 16
million hectares of land, out of 34 million hectares of cultivable lands available. This land lies
within the plains formed by river Indus and its tributaries. Britishers started the barrage irrigation
system during 1930s. However, before that the residents of Punjab, Sindh, and Frontier had
constructed a number of inundation canals to irrigate their lands. In the Punjab, 38 such canals
had been taken out of Sutlej, Indus, and Chenab rivers to irrigate areas around Bari Doab,
Multan, Muzaffargarh, and Dera Ghazi Khan. In Sindh, water level of the Indus during summer
had always been higher than the surrounding lands, thus, 16 inundation canals in this area had
conveniently carried out the irrigation water during past century. However, British Army Engineers
undertook construction and improvement of several irrigation canals in the sub-continent.
Subsequently, remodeling/construction works on Bari Doab Canal; Sidhnai Canal, Lower Sohag,
Ramnagar Canal, Lower Jhelum Canal, Kabul Canal, and Lower Sawat were completed by the
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 end of l9th century. However, at the time of independence country had 29 canals to provide
regulated supply to an area of about 11 million hectares, beside an area of about 3.2 million
hectares irrigated through inundation canals leading from Indus and its tributaries. These main
inundation canals included Upper Sutlej, Lower Sutlej, Shahpur, and Chenab in Punjab; whereas,
Rohri, Fuleli, Pinyari, and Kalri in Sindh. However, after the construction of barrages these canals
are no more inundation canals but get regulated water supply and some of them have become
perennial while few are nonperennial.
We have entered into 21st century with world's largest and unified irrigation
system that consists of three major reservoirs (Chashma, Mangla, and Tarbela); 19 barrages
(Ferozepur, Sulemanki, Islam, Balloki, Marala, Trimmu, Panjnad, Kalabagh, Sukkur, Kotri,
Taunsa, Guddu, Chashma, Mailsi,Sidhnai, Rasul, Qadirabad, and Marala); 12 link canals; 45
irrigation canals; and over 107,000 water courses and millions of farm channels & field ditches.
The total length of main canal system is estimated about 585000 Kilometer (36932 miles) and
that of watercourses & field channels exceeds 1.62 million Kilometers (over 1.02 million miles).

3. Catchments of Indus river system:

The Indus basin is a part of the catchments of the Indus river system that includes the northwest
mountains, the Katchi plain, desert areas of Sindh, Bahawalpur, and the Rann of Kachh. The
Indus and its major tributaries flow in longitudinal valleys in structural troughs paralleled to the
mountain and invariably take an acute bend descending to the alluvial plains by cutting through
mountains. These plains are stretched over a distance of 1528 Kilometers (950 miles) to the tidal
delta near the Arabian Sea. The total catchment area of Indus River system spreads over
944,573 square kilometers (364,700 square miles). Of which 553,416 square kilometers (213,674
square miles) exist in Pakistan with a varying width of over 320 kilometers (nearly 200 miles) in
the Punjab to about 80 kilometers (50 miles) in the narrow neck between the Thar Desert and the
Khirthar mountains. The flat plain of Indus basin is made up of highly fertile alluvium deposited by
the river Indus and its tributaries. Agriculture is concentrated essentially to this plain, where it has
been developed by harnessing principal surface water resources available. Since, evaporation is
high with meager and unreliable rainfall over Indus plains, hence, agriculture is wholly dependent
on irrigation supplies. The river Indus and its tributaries are like a funnel, they rise in the northern
mountain areas, receive water from various resources (snow, glacier melt, and rainfall), converge
into a single stream at Panjnad (Mithankot), cover about 1005 Kilometers (625 miles) through the
Sindh province, and finally discharge into Arabian sea.

4. Water Resources of Pakistan:

There are two types of major resources of water in Pakistan, natural and artificial. Natural
resources include rainfall, rivers, glaciers, ponds, lakes, streams, karez and wells etc. whereas
artificial resources consist of the surface water from rainfall and rivers, which is in excess of the
requirements for irrigation and other uses, is stored in dams and reservoirs. The water from
these dams and reservoirs is not only used for irrigation and supplying water for daily
consumption, but also used for hydroelectric power generation.

a) Rainfall

There are two major sources of rainfall in Pakistan i.e. the Monsoons and the Western
Disturbances. There is about 70 percent of the annual Monsoon rainfall from July to September.
Pakistan has both arid and semi-arid zones. The entire Indus plain receives an average

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seasonal rainfall of 212mm and 53mm in the Kharif and Rabi seasons respectively. The rainfall
varies as we move from the north and northeast to the south of the country. It is only the canal
command areas in the NWFP and the northern-most canal commands of the Punjab Province
that receive some appreciable amount of rainfall during the summer as well as in the winter
season.

b) Glaciers

There are more glaciers in Pakistan than any other land except North and South Poles. The
glacier area of Pakistan is about 13,680 sq km and on the average is 3 percent of mountainous
region of upper Indus Basin and accounts for most of the river turnoff in summer. Pakistan has
greatest mass and collection of glaciers on the earth. In Karakoram Range, the total length of
glaciers is 160 km. About 37 percent of the Karakoram area is under its glacier, Himalayas
has17 percent and European Alps has 22 percent. It was estimated the total area of glacier of
the upper Indus catchments is about 2,250 sq km, which is mainly from most of the river runoff in
the summer season. The snow fed Kabul river starts from the Unal Pass in the southern
Hindukash is at an elevation of 3,000 meters above the sea level. After flowing in the eastern
Afghanistan, it enters Pakistan from north of Khyber Pass. The Jhelum River originates from
Kashmir at lower elevation than that of Indus River (Pakistan Water Strategy Report).

c) Rivers and Dams

Pakistan has been blessed with a number of rivers which are tributaries to the Indus. The five
main rivers which join Indus from eastern side are Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas and Sutlej,
beside three minor rivers are the Haro, Soan and Siran. There are number of small rivers which
join the River Indus from the west side, in which biggest river is Kabul and others are Kunar,
Punj, and Kora. The Gomal Kurram, Tai, Kohat Tank and several other small streams join the
Indus River from the right side.

d) Surface water resources

Irrigated agriculture was, still is, and will remain in future the backbone of Pakistan's economy.
Nature has blessed Pakistan with abundant surface and subsurface water resources. These
resources had been exploited and utilized for agricultural, domestic, and industrial purposes in
the past and will continue to be explored in future. The river Indus and its tributaries provide the
surface water. At the time of independence, we had about 67 MAF water available for diversion,
this amount increased to about 85 MAF by the year 1960. At this juncture, the right of three
eastern rivers (Beas, Sutlej, and Ravi) was given to India under Irrigation Water Treaty 1960,
during this period; Indus Basin Project (IBP) was implemented with international assistance of
the World Bank. IBP enabled Pakistan to acquire significant capability of river flow regulation
through integrated system. By the dint of river regulation-cum-storage facilities of IBP and other
irrigation developments on the river Indus, canal diversions progressively increased and peaked
to about 108 MAF. The recent statistical data shows that the River Indus and its tributaries
provide about 147 MAF during flood season. Out of which nearly 106 MAF is diverted into canals
and is available for agriculture, while, about 32 MAF outflows into sea, whereas, over 8.6 MAF is
considered as evaporation and seepage losses in the river system. It is worth mention here that
during last 3-5 years hardly 2-5 MAF water has flown into sea, whereas, at least 12 MAF must
be left to sea in order to control intrusion of brackish water.

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e) Ground water resources

The Indus plains constitute about 34 million hectares (over 85 million acres) of cultivable land,
which is under-lain predominantly by sand alluvium to a considerable depth. Annual recharge to
ground water system of this Indus plain is estimated around 55 MAF, out of which about 48 MAF
is within the commands of Indus basin irrigation system (IBIS). Presently, 39 MAF is being
extracted annually. Ground water is also found in some rain-fed (Barani) lands, and inter-
mountain valleys at depths varying from 100 to 200 ft. During 1950s, large area in the Indus
basin became waterlogged and soil salinity increased adversely affecting the agricultural
productivity. It was the time when government got involved and took initiatives in the ground
water development. The efforts began to control the twin menaces of waterlogging and salinity
by the way of providing drainage facilities. Government embarked on a series of SCARPs in the
late 1950s aimed at lowering the ground water table by providing "vertical drainage" through
large capacity deep tube wells. Because of better economic returns, priority was given to
locating SCARPs in the areas with ground water quality suitable for supplemental irrigation,
making the drainage a by product in effect. During past four decades, about 15000 SCARP tube
wells have been installed by the Government in 57 projects covering a gross area of about 7.7
million hectares affected land for putting it back into production. Almost 75% of all SCARP tube
wells were installed in the Punjab. About 81% of total tube wells installed in Punjab province are
located in fresh ground water areas, whereas, remaining 19% tube wells have been installed in
saline ground water areas. The tube wells installed in the fresh ground water areas have been
pumping water directly into watercourses; thus, they are being used for irrigation in addition to
canal water. However, the tube wells installed in the areas with saline ground water, discharge
saline water directly into drains, from where it is being disposed of.

f) Soon after the initiation of the SCARP program

Large-scale development of ground water was started by the private tube wells. According to latest
reports issued by the Government of Pakistan, the number of private tube wells has increased from
27000 to over 400000 during period between 1964 and 1995. All of the 400000 private tube wells have
been installed in fresh ground water zones and are being used for irrigation purposes. About 80 per cent
of these tube wells are located in Punjab and supply around 40 per cent of total irrigation in the province.

g) Future of water resources and needs

One of the key issues to Pakistan is the growing population pressure, which is responsible for
driving its water resource development. It has the world's fastest growing population that has
surpassed the 140 million mark by now and is still increasing at an alarming rate of around 2.8%,
which needs to be checked, whereas the growth rate in agriculture sector remains somehow
lower than the demand due to limiting irrigation water. To keep up the pace of agricultural growth
comparable to population growth, we must bring additional lands under cultivation. In order to
achieve the required growth targets in agriculture, we will need estimated amounts of about 149
MAF by 2000, 215 MAF by year 2013 and about 277 MAF by year 2025. This scenario warns
that Pakistan has already slid from water affluent country to a water scare country and already a
shortage of over 40 MAF persists and it will increase to a projected water shortage of over 108
MAF, and 151 MAF by years 2013 and 2025, respectively. Since no additional water is available,
it is better to improve the existing water system and land capabilities; otherwise, Pakistan will be
facing acute shortages of food, fiber, and edible oils in near future. It is time to recognize our
responsibilities and start taking steps in right direction. We must keep eye on the issues such as,
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 inadequate management and inefficient operation of irrigation systems, poor water application
&unequal water distribution, depletion of ground water resources, reduction in storage capacities
of existing system, and wastage of summer river surpluses and slow agricultural growth.

5. Development potential and future strategies:

a) Improve surface storage capacity

Future development of the country depends on water resources expansion and management. It
has been recognized that more than 83 MAF water can be generated through various
resources (See Table). These potential resources include; surface water 33 MAF, ground water
9 MAF, watercourse improvement 15 MAF, minor canals 5 MAF, and distributaries 21 MAF.
According to a report of working group on water resources for the 7th five year plan (1987), no
new storage have been created after the completion of Tarbela due to rising controversies over
the construction of such reservoirs. Thus, it has become necessary to focus on small size
irrigation schemes (storage on rivers). There is a need to construct small dams on rivers Indus,
Jhelum, Chenab, and their small tributaries. The potential sites for these small reservoirs/dams
need to be surveyed. However, some of these sites are located at "Sehwan-Manchar Lake,
Chotiari depression, Hamal Lake, Skardu, Bunji, Kohala, Kunhar, Rohtas, Neelam Valley,
Ambahar, Dhok Pathan, Dhok Abakki, and Thal Reservoir" those may be explored/utilized. The
level of Mangla dam can also be raised to increase its storage capacity. Another option is to
manage the existing irrigation system in a better way and undertake new schemes wherever
possible.

b) Conjunctive use of ground water

Conjunctive use refers to the co-ordinate, combined, creative exploitation, and judicious use of
ground water for sustained development. It deals with neither over extraction nor under
extraction of the source. This option has technically and economically been considered as the
most viable strategy in the past studies. But, the tragedy of this source is that the government
has no effective control over the excessive pumping of ground water in some areas, hence, it
has started to diminish in those areas. The ground water table has already started declining in
14 out of 45 canal commands. Due to over-exploitation of this resource, the sustainability of
irrigated agriculture is facing a new threat in some of the canal commands in Punjab. This
situation needs to be checked and addressed urgently. However, Indus Basin Irrigation System
(IBIS) has a potential of around 48 MAF water within its commands and nearly 39 MAF of
ground water is being extracted annually. This leaves with 9 MAF of water still available at this
source. This amount could be extracted and utilized for irrigation purpose.

c) Increase the efficiency of existing system

The unchecked growth of population has increased pressure on land and water resources
throughout the world; thus, it has become imperative to conserve our water supplies. New
sources of supply are becoming scare and are unlikely to be constructed in the near future due
to geopolitical reasons, naturally, the emphasis must be given on methods that can salvage the
supplies already being lost within the irrigation system in the form of seepage. Several reports
have shown that about 25 to 30% of the water is being lost in the conveyance system of the
different countries of the world. A considerable amount of water is lost during its conveyance
due to seepage in lengthy canals; lining of the system channels could reduce these losses. As

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 reported by WAPDA, more than 5 MAF of irrigation water could be saved by lining the minor
canals only, and additional amount of about 3.6 MAF could be saved by water course
improvement (see, GOP, Sixth five year plan, 1983-88), this makes a total saving of over 8.6
MAF. However, due to financial constrains, it is not possible to line entire canal system thus, the
portions with high potential of seepage and those located in the areas with high salt content
could be lined, by doing so, not only huge quantities of irrigation water could be saved but also
the risk of water logging and salinity could be reduced. This would result in saving of huge
investments that otherwise are required for drainage projects. Also, the existing system requires
development of new irrigation projects on non-perennial basis. It has been stemmed out in the
Water Apportionment Accord (WAA) of 1991, that remodeling / construction of non-perennial
canals should be taken, this would not only provide additional water for agriculture but also
save a bulk amount (derived during monsoon) from flowing into sea. In this regard construction
of Thar Canal in Sindh (non-perennial canal) should be undertaken to carry the additional water
during monsoon season.

6. Water Demand and Availability:

The level of agricultural production is directly related to the availability and effective use of
wateras a major input. The demand for water is increasing rapidly, while the opportunities for
furtherdevelopment of water resources are diminishing. Several reasons for growing water
strategies could be attributed to expansion in irrigationactivities for boosting food and nonfood
production to meet the increasing demand of growingpopulation and growth in civic population
needing large supply of water. Salinity is another severeproblem to be tackled. Salinity mainly
occurs in some irrigated land rocking water in the soil whichabsorbs mineral salts from the
earth. Due to evaporation of water, such salts dry out on the soil surfaceand deplete its fertility.
It is estimated that salinity has damaged about 25 percent of cultivated land.Reclamation of
salined land is too much expensive. In Pakistan half of the run water (it is water falls onthe
country is collected in river, lakes and dams) is drawn about as much gain from the under
groundspin aquifer. By 2025 water demand would be 92 percent entire runoff. It is estimated
that 25 percentabout has been destroyed due to salinity. For irrigation purpose, only one third of
water is used.Efficient use of water is enrollment friendly. Both over watering a poor drainage
system arecompounding the salinity problem (Kaleem Omar, 2007)“Managing the Indus River
Basin the Light of climate changes”, water supply is falling behindagricultural and urban
demand particularly in Karachi where population growth exceeds the physicalinstitutional
capacity of the public water system (Kaleem Omar, 2004).Allocation of water among the
provinces used to be made on adhoc grounds up to March 1991, when there was mutual
consensus in the form of inter-Provincial water accord. Unfortunately, due to drought of the late
1990s continued in to the 21st century the accord remained unworkable. This hasmade
imperative to work out an efficient and equitable management strategy about Indus Basin.
There has been growing realization to economize water. Through using best cultivation
techniques for proper water management.

a) The Irrigation System of Pakistan

The irrigation system of Pakistan is the largest integrated irrigation network in the world,
serving42 million acres of cultivated land. This system is fed by the water of the Indus River and
its tributaries. The salient features of the irrigation system are given in the following table 1.

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 Table-1

Salient Features of Irrigation System of Pakistan Structure No.

Major Storage Reservoirs 03
Small Dams (Appox. 3.00 MAF) 80
Barrages 19
Inter-River Link Canals 12
Independent Irrigation Canal Commands 45

The major storage reservoirs include Tarbela, Chashma on Indus River and Mangla on Jhelum
River. The total length of main canals and distributaries are 64,000 km. whereas
watercoursescomprise another 1,621,000 km. The diversion of river waters into off taking canals
is made through12barrages, which are gated diversion weirs. The main canals in turn deliver
water to branch canals,distributaries and minors. The watercourses get their share of water
thorough outlets in the irrigationchannels. Distribution of water from watercourses is effected
through a time schedule called“Warabandi”.

7. Conservation of Water Resources in Pakistan:

Scarcity of water and drought has been compelled the countries to adopt the
conservationmeasures. In the scare water situation, Islam do not permits unnecessary utilization
of water. Scrolling the pages of Islamic history, we witness the struggle of Hazrat Hajira for water
under blazing sun in theburning desert and sprouting of water spring from the rocky soil as a gift
from Allah. The efforts forsearch of water was so much liked by the Almighty Allah that it has
become a fundamental part of Hajjtill the Day of Judgment. Moreover, cessation of water with
stones to avoid its wastage and stocking itfor long time besides saying “Zam Zam “means “stop”
was the first step towards water storage, whichled to concept for construction of dams.
The construction of dams in Pakistan is imperative, as only two dams have
been constructedafter 1947, whereas, India and Turkey has constructed 24 and 65 dams
respectively during the sameperiod. The sedimentation in reservoirs is increasing drastically not
just scuttled resources for irrigationbut also lower energy production which also effects on
industrial sector‟s expansion and efficiency ofagriculture. The government is working on
prospect projects for raising the storage in order to meet thefuture water and energy
consumption of our country. The details of the prospective storage projects are given in
Table 2.
Table-2
Name of Project Storage Capacity Installed Capacity Status
(MAF) (MW)
Live Gross
Basha Dam 6.4 7.30 4500 Engineering Design (Under
Preparation)
Kalabagh Dam 6.10 7.90 3600 Ready for Implementation
Skardu Dam - - 4000 Under Feasibility Study
Akhori Dam
Akhori Dam 3.60 7.00 600 -do-
Munda Dam 0.56 1.00 600 Engineering Design (Under
Preparation)

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 The critical issue in water sector is to resolve the scarcity of water through augmentation and
conservation. The augmentation of water supplies by implementing high priority projects like
Raising of Mangla Dam, construction of Gomal Zam Dam, Greater Thal Canal, Rainee Canal,
Kachhi Canal, Mirani Dam, Sat Para Dam, Sabakzai Dam, Kurram Tangi Dam, Diamer Basha
Dam, Munda Dam and other medium and small reservoirs. Priority will be given to the
completion of ongoing schemes at advance stages. It is estimated that on completion of these
projects an area of 3,239,882 acres will be irrigated.

a) Water Conservation Strategy

To work out a sound and cogent water conservation strategy is the need of the time, as demand
for water continues to rise because of increasing use of water in agriculture and industry for the
purpose of economic development and due to rapid growth of population, whereas there is
limited supply of water. Water management is the biggest challenge of 21st century confronted
by the country, as irrigated agriculture is 24 percent of GDP, the livelihood for the majority of
country and input of agrobased industry/exports. It has been made known that a considerable
amount of water is lost during its 14 conveyance for the seepage in the lengthy canals. Proper
lining of the canal system could reduce these losses. According to a WAPDA Report more than
5 MAF of irrigation could be saved by lining of minor canals and addition 3.6 MAF could be
saved by improvement of water courses. It is heartening to note that Government of the Punjab
has introduced modern telemetery system to check and control water theft by the farmers. In
order to overcome the menacing challenge of water shortage and its losses, it has become
imperative to work on the lines of “Blue Revolution” which is threshold of the strategy meant for
making use of more effective techniques and obtaining optimum results for reduction in water
losses. The definition of “Blue Revolution” has been coined as a system of drip irrigation that
delivers water directly to the roots of crops by cutting use of water by 30 to 70 percent and
raising crop yield on the average by 20 to 90 percent.

8. Indus Water Treaty between Pak and India:

The Indus Waters Treaty is a water-sharing treatybetween the Republic of India and Islamic
Republic of Pakistan, brokered by the World Bank (then theInternational Bank for Reconstruction
and Development). The treaty was signed in Karachi on September 19, 1960 by Indian Prime
MinisterJawaharlal Nehru and President of PakistanMohammad Ayub Khan. The treaty was a
result of Pakistani fear that since the source rivers of the Indus basin were in India, it could
potentially create droughts and famines in Pakistan, especially at times of war. However, India
did not revoke the treaty during any of three later Indo-Pakistani Wars.

a) Provisions

The Indus System of Rivers comprises three Western Rivers the Indus, the Jhelum and Chenab
and three Eastern Rivers - the Sutlej, the Beas and the Ravi and with minor exceptions, the
treaty gives India exclusive use of all of the waters of the Eastern Rivers and their tributaries
before the point where the rivers enter Pakistan. Similarly, Pakistan has exclusive use of the
Western Rivers. Pakistan also received one-time financial compensation for the loss of water
from the Eastern Rivers. The countries agree to exchange data and co-operate in matters
related to the treaty. For this purpose, treaty creates the Permanent Indus Commission, with a
commissioner appointed by each country.

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 b) History and background

The waters of the Indus basin begin in Chinese Tibet and the Himalayan mountains in the state
of Jammu and Kashmir. They flow from the hills through the arid states of Punjab and Sindh,
converging in Pakistan and emptying into the Arabian Sea south of Karachi. Where once there
was only a narrow strip of irrigated land along these rivers, developments over the last century
have created a large network of canals and storage facilities that provide water for more than
26 million acres (110,000 km2) - the largest irrigated area of any one river system in the world.
The partition of British India created a conflict over the plentiful waters of the Indus basin. The
newly formed states were at odds over how to share and manage what was essentially a
cohesive and unitary network of irrigation. Furthermore, the geography of partition was such
that the source rivers of the Indus basin were in India. Pakistan felt its livelihood threatened by
the prospect of Indian control over the tributaries that fed water into the Pakistani portion of the
basin. Where India certainly had its own ambitions for the profitable development of the basin,
Pakistan felt acutely threatened by a conflict over the main source of water for its cultivable
land.
During the first years of partition the waters of the Indus were apportioned by the Inter-
Dominion Accord of May 4, 1948. This accord required India to release sufficient waters to the
Pakistani regions of the basin in return for annual payments from the government of Pakistan.
The accord was meant to meet immediate requirements and was followed by negotiations for a
more permanent solution. Neither side, however, was willing to compromise their respective
positions nordid negotiations reach a stalemate. From the Indian point of view, there was
nothing that Pakistan could do to prevent India from any of the schemes to divert the flow of
water in the rivers. Pakistan‟s position was dismal and India could do whatever it wanted.[2]
Pakistan wanted to take the matter to the International Court of Justice but India refused,
arguing that the conflict required a bilateral resolution.
By 1951, the two sides were no longer meeting and the situation seemed intractable.
The Pakistani press was calling for more drastic action and the deadlock contributed to hostility
with India. As one anonymous Indian official said at the time, "India and Pakistan can go on
shouting on Kashmir for all time to come, but an early settlement on the Indus waters is
essential for maintenance of peace in the sub-continent" (Gulati 16). Despite the unwillingness
to compromise, both nations were anxious to find a solution, fully aware that the Indus conflict
could lead to overt hostilities if unresolved.

c) World Bank involvement

In this same year, David Lilienthal, formerly the chairman of the Tennessee Valley Authority and
of the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission visited the region to write a series of articles for Colliers
magazine. Lilienthal had a keen interest in the subcontinent and was welcomed by the highest
levels of both Indian and Pakistani governments. Although his visit was sponsored by Colliers,
Lilienthal was briefed by State Department and executive branch officials, who hoped he could
help bridge the gap between India and the United States and also gauge hostilities on the
subcontinent. During the course of his visit, it became clear to Lilienthal that tensions between
India and Pakistan were acute, but also unable to be erased with one sweeping gesture. In his
journal he wrote:
"India and Pakistan were on the verge of war over Kashmir. There seemed to be no
possibility of negotiating this issue until tensions abated. One way to reduce hostility would be
to concentrate on other important issues where cooperation was possible. Progress in these
areas would promote a sense of community between the two nations which might, in time, lead
to a Kashmir settlement. Accordingly, I proposed that India and Pakistan work out a program

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jointly to develop and jointly to operate the Indus Basin river system, upon which both nations
were dependent for irrigation water. With new dams and irrigation canals, the Indus and its
tributaries could be made to yield the additional water each country needed for increased food
production. In the article I had suggested that the World Bank might use its good offices to bring
the parties to agreement, and help in the financing of an Indus Development program. (Gulhati
93)"
Lilienthal's idea was well received by officials at the World Bank, and, subsequently,
by the Indian and Pakistani governments. Eugene R. Black, then president of the World Bank
told Lilienthal that his proposal "makes good sense all round". Black wrote that the Bank was
interested in the economic progress of the two countries and had been concerned that the
Indus dispute could only be a serious handicap to this development. India's previous objections
to third party arbitration were remedied by the Bank's insistence that it would not adjudicate the
conflict, but, instead, work as a conduit for agreement.
Black also made a distinction between the "functional" and "political" aspects of the
Indus dispute. In his correspondence with Indian and Pakistan leaders, Black asserted that the
Indus dispute could most realistically be solved if the functional aspects of disagreement were
negotiated apart from political considerations. He envisioned a group that tackled the question
of how best to utilize the waters of the Indus Basin - leaving aside questions of historic rights or
allocations.
Black proposed a Working Party made up of Indian, Pakistani and World Bank
engineers. The World Bank delegation would act as a consultative group, charged with offering
suggestions and speeding dialogue. In his opening statement to the Working Party, Black
spoke of why he was optimistic about the group's success:
One aspect of Mr. Lilienthal's proposal appealed to me from the first. I mean his
insistence that the Indus problem is an engineering problem and should be dealt with by
engineers. One of the strengths of the engineering profession is that, all over the world,
engineers speak the same language and approach problems with common standards of
judgment. (Gulhati 110) Black's hopes for a quick resolution to the Indus dispute were
premature. While the Bank had expected that the two sides would come to an agreement on
the allocation of waters, neither India nor Pakistan seemed willing to compromise their
positions. While Pakistan insisted on its historical right to waters of all the Indus tributaries, and
that half of West Punjab was under threat of desertification the Indian side argued that the
previous distribution of waters should not set future allocation. Instead, the Indian side set up a
new basis of distribution, with the waters of the Western tributaries going to Pakistan and the
Eastern tributaries to India. The substantive technical discussions that Black had hoped for
were stymied by the political considerations he had expected to avoid.
The World Bank soon became frustrated with this lack of progress. What had originally
been envisioned as a technical dispute that would quickly untangle itself became an intractable
mess. India and Pakistan were unable to agree on the technical aspects of allocation, let alone
the implementation of any agreed upon distribution of waters. Finally, in 1954, after nearly two
years of negotiation, the World Bank offered its own proposal, stepping beyond the limited role
it had apportioned for itself and forcing the two sides to consider concrete plans for the future of
the basin. The proposal offered India the three eastern tributaries of the basin and Pakistan the
three western tributaries. Canals and storage dams were to be constructed to divert waters
from the western rivers and replace the eastern river supply lost by Pakistan.
While the Indian side was amenable to the World Bank proposal, Pakistan found it
unacceptable. The World Bank allocated the eastern rivers to India and the western rivers to
Pakistan. This new distribution did not account for the historical usage of the Indus basin, or the
fact that West Punjab's Eastern districts could turn into desert, and repudiated Pakistan's
negotiating position. Where India had stood for a new system of allocation, Pakistan felt that its

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 share of waters should be based on pre-partition distribution. The World Bank proposal was
more in line with the Indian plan and this angered the Pakistani delegation. They threatened to
withdraw from the Working Party and negotiations verged on collapse.
But neither side could afford the dissolution of talks. The Pakistani press met rumors of
and ends to negotiation with talk of increased hostilities; the government was ill-prepared to
forego talks for a violent conflict with India and was forced to reconsider its position. India was
also eager to settle the Indus issue; large development projects were put on hold by
negotiations and Indian leaders were eager to divert water for irrigation.
In December 1954, the two sides returned to the negotiating table. The World Bank
proposal was transformed from a basis of settlement to a basis for negotiation and the talks
continued, stop and go, for the next six years. One of the last stumbling blocks to an agreement
concerned financing for the construction of canals and storage facilities that would transfer
water from the eastern Indian rivers to Pakistan. This transfer was necessary to make up for the
water Pakistan was giving up by ceding its rights to the eastern tributaries. The World Bank
initially planned for India to pay for these works, but India refused. The Bank responded with a
plan for external financing supplied mainly by the United States and the United Kingdom. This
solution cleared the remaining stumbling blocks to agreement and the Treaty was signed by the
Prime Ministers of both countries in 1960.

d) Treaty provisions

The agreement set up a commission to adjudicate any future disputes arising over the allocation
of waters. The Permanent Indus Commission has survived two wars and provides an on-going
mechanism for consultation and conflict resolution through inspection, exchange of data, and
visits. The Commission is required to meet regularly to discuss potential disputes as well as
cooperative arrangements for the development of the basin. Either party must notify the other of
plans to construct any engineering works which would affect the other party and to provide data
about such works. In cases of disagreement, a neutral expert is called in for mediation and
arbitration. While neither side has initiated projects that could cause the kind of conflict that the
Commission was created to resolve, the annual inspections and exchange of data continue,
unperturbed by tensions on the subcontinent.

9. Strategic Analysis:
 New Dams require extensive benefit sharing-especially those that are contentious
 Climate change is forcing response in water sector-it has to be both demand and
supply side driven
 Undertake research on development, management, conservation, utilization and quality
of water resources.
 Develop and maintain National Water Resources Database
 Design, develop and evaluate water conservation technologies.
 Undertake contractual research and provide consultancy services to the private and
public sector.
 Establish liaison and collaborate with other related national and international research
and development organizations. Publish scientific papers, reports, periodicals, arrange
seminars, training workshops and conferences on water related issues.
 Conduct, organize, coordinate and promote research on all aspects of water resources,
including irrigation, drainage, reclamation, navigation, drinking water, industrial water,
and sewerage management and to set up national centers, wherever necessary.

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  Advise the government and submit policy recommendations regarding quality,
development, management, conservation and utilization of water resources.
 Develop and maintain national water resources database, for use by the planning,
implementing agencies and public.
 Design, develop and evaluate water conservation technologies for irrigation, drinking
and industrial water.
 Initiate national water quality monitoring programme, in the urban and rural areas of
Pakistan and develop technologies for providing safe drinking water to the public.
 Conduct and coordinate research or desertification, drought and flood mitigation.
 We have resources and we need to utilize them and government may make more
schools and children should get educated and be our future heroes. So the thing is that
we are not a water starved country, we have lots of resources!

10. Conclusion:

The problems faced by the water sector in the country are many, acute and serious. Therefore,
building of more reservoirs and an effective management strategy are the needs of time. Also
implementation of the recommendations will enable the country to meet the challenges, and
achieve the objectives of integrated, efficient, environmentally and financially sustainable
development and management of limited water resources. At the same time it will enable us to
utilize every drop of our water for our bright future.

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11. Bibliographic Search:

Altaf, A.,Mir, Whittington, D., Haroon, J. & Smith, V.K. (1993) Rethinking, Rural Water
Supply Policy in the Punjab, Water Resources Research, 29(7), pp. 1943-1954.

Agricultural Statistics of Pakistan, different issues, Ministry of Food, Agriculture & Livestock,
Government of Pakistan.

Indus River System Authority (IRSA), Different Reports on Water, Ministry of Water
&Power, Government of Pakistan.

Lieftinck, P., Sadove, R.A & Creyke, T.A (1968) Water and Power Resources of West
Pakistan: A Study in Sector Planning, Baltimore, Jhons Hopkins Press.

National Water Policy (Draft, 2004) Ministry of Environment, Government of Pakistan.

Kaleem Omar (8th November, 2004) Needed a „Blue Revolution ‟; national water policy on
anvil, The News.

Kaleem Omar (2nd July, 2007) Pakistan now faces the prospect of worsening water
shortages, The News.

Pakistan Strategic Country Environment Assessment Report (2006), Rising to the

Challenges, Ministry of Environment, Government of Pakistan.

Pakistan‟s Vision of Water Resource Management (2003) Presented at Pakistan

Development Forum, Ministry of Water & Power, Government of Pakistan.

Pakistan Water Partnership (1999) Pakistan country Report: Vision for the 21st Century,
First Draft (Global Water Partnership South Asia Technical Advisory Committee),
Islamabad.
Pakistan Water Sector Strategy (2002) Volume 1, Ministry of Water & Power, Government
of Pakistan.

Pasha, H.A. & McGarry, M.G. (1989) Rural Water Supply and Sanitation in Pakistan;
Lessons from Experience, World Bank Technical Paper No.105 (Washington, DC, World
Bank)

State of the Environment Report (Draft, 2005) Ministry of Environment, Government of

Pakistan.

Ten Year Perspective Development Plan 2001-11, Planning Commission, Government of

Pakistan.

_________________________

Prepared by: M.Ahsan Qureshi

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