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Special
Reports/Water Crisis |
Water scarcity to hit farm production
By Zafar Samdani
While water has been on a scarcity streak for the past few
years, the situation became critical during the last year;
prevailing conditions inform of a semi-drought like state in
the coming season in view of the predicted 60 percent shortage
of irrigation water for the Rabi crop.
 Rains
visited Pakistan only half heartedly this summer; the regular
monsoon season surrendered itself to dryness that was unusual
to unprecedented. Glaciers did not melt sufficiently to
increase water in the rivers and in reservoirs that are
already suffering from sedimentation and their capacity is
shrinking by the year.
The storage capacity of Mangla and Tarbela dams and Chashma
has been substantially reduced over the years. Whatever the
quantity of rains in the future, water storages of Pakistan
would remain short of meeting the country's irrigation needs.
This situation is not going to be reversed.
Water shortage is not of recent origin. Experts have been
warning against impending scarcity and emphasizing that
Pakistan, an affluent country in terms of water at the time of
independence, was turning in to a water poor nation because of
dwindling resources, delay in building additional storage
facilities and excessive, unplanned and extravagant use of
water. No one paid heed to their expertise or foresight.
One way or the other, governments in command since the exit of
Z.A. Bhutto in July 1977 were more preoccupied with their
survival than national priorities, deliberately neglecting
them for personal ends, as in the case of General Zia, or,
like Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif, unable to act with
authority because of multiple extraneous pressures.
The situation has been compounded by persistent drought in the
past four years that inflicted untold miseries on Thar,
Cholistan and some areas of Balochistan. Human lives and
animal wealth were devastated on a large scale. The
government's response consisted of support for the affected
people but no plans were drawn for preparing the country
against such a calamity in case of its recurrence.
With a pathetic lack of focus on the real issue, conditions
were bound to deteriorate. That has happened and more
frighteningly, worse seems to be around the corner.
Unfortunately, a routine approach still marks the government's
handling of the situation. The issue is not distribution of
water but saving Pakistan from imminent disaster and ensuring
that agriculture's output is at least not impaired.
This is a scenario of near doom for Pakistan's agriculture but
even worse, there seems no silver lining on the horizon, no
clouds that could pour down relief. Whatever one's opinion of
the government's handling of the water crises, there can be no
disagreement that no administration can create additional
water, certainly not overnight. What happens in the long run
is a different subject, not that ground conditions hold much
hope on that count.
The only thing within the jurisdiction of the government is
management of available resources. That task has been assigned
to IRSA. Little positive is to be said on this count because
officials presiding over IRSA always appear to be looking at
the fall-out of their decisions from a certain non-economic,
non-agriculture point of view or pandering to the interests of
influential elements.
The officials may not be blamed all the way because these
elements are mostly in command of national affairs and often
comprise, if not traditional land barons, new members of the
feudal elite who operate with the zeal of fresh converts.
Beneficiaries of a generous policy of sale of agriculture land
at throwaway prices, they usually have official backing for
exploitation of resources; they are also often more demanding
than traditional land owning families.
These pressures notwithstanding IRSA, the top water management
body of the country has been working with blurred sights; it
has not been able to settle the basic issue of how the water
should be distributed: to provinces or to lands and crops.
This is all the more important if optimum results are to be
obtained from the use of available water.
Whether IRSA has been vested with authority to rise above the
routine is a question but judging from its established
directions and methodology for managing water, it does not
appear to have worked on any line other than trying to satisfy
provinces and distribute water to satisfy demands that are not
necessarily linked with irrigation requirements of crops.
The cultivation cycle in the two main regions of Pakistan,
lower Sindh on one side and upper Sindh and Punjab on the
other, are separated by a period of nearly eight weeks.
Crops are cultivated and harvested in lower Sindh earlier than
the other agriculture region. That is an important factor for
determining water needs of crops in the two regions.
There in fact seems a basic fault in the mandate of IRSA.
Water must be properly and equitably distributed but the
purpose should be making it more productive for crops.
Its distribution cannot be an end in itself. The sole function
of IRSA, though presumably not its official mandate, seems to
be distributing water to keep segments appeased or pleased.
While references are constantly made to rabi and kharif crops
and water is ostensibly allocated for them, the system is only
marginally beneficial to crops in the two cultivation cycle
zones.
There is little evidence that the functioning of IRSA is
specifically designed for promoting productivity of the
agriculture sector through water. But unless that is done, the
problem would not only persist, it is certain to aggravate as
surely as night follows the day.
In any case, IRSA alone cannot ensure productivity from water
without organized and planned input from agriculture and
irrigation departments of provinces. Their resources and
facilities need to be harnessed collectively for procuring
maximum results from scuttled supplies.
A collective effort has become a prerequisite if Pakistan's
agriculture is to continue producing even the present quantum
of yields; thinking of improvements and gains would be
self-deception at this point in time, not that the authorities
are ever to presenting pictures that do not reflect ground
realities.
Agriculture departments of provinces, mainly Sindh and Punjab
have to precisely identify requirements of crops in each area,
indeed in each field and provide them the required irrigation
input exactly when it is needed.
There is no room for delay or waste, let alone for aimless
discussions in offices cut off from the actual scene and
viewing from developments from angles other than the country's
agriculture.
IRSA is a federal body while agriculture is a provincial
subject but that should not force isolation on various
components of the sector. There must be close coordination
between all organizations and agencies linked with
agriculture.
At this point in time, only discordance can be the title of
the official scheme for the distribution of water. A
comprehensive plan needs must be formulated to obtain the best
from available water.
More importantly, the plan should not be restricted to one
rabi and one kharif crop but for the coming years when water
could become an even scarcer commodity and only a thin line
may be standing between Pakistan, an agriculture based economy
and famine.
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Courtesy :
The DAWN
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