Every year during the monsoon Pakistan has to face the brunt of heavy rainfalls and resultant losses due to massive flooding. These losses include; erosion of land all along the rivers and nullahs, damages to crops and live stocks, destruction of houses and properties and human losses. Nevertheless, immediately after the monsoon is over, the governments, the responsible institutions and even the people forget the impacts of floods and losses until another recurrence in the monsoon of the following year. This process is going on for decades now without any future planning and foresight.
The stereotype thinking among the government circle and institutions like National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) is that, the monsoon is a natural calamity hence nothing can be done. So, the authorities wait for another happening. This is a wrong perception and ill-conceived concept. This is true that, rainfall during monsoon is a natural phenomenon but, through meticulous planning and correct identification of threat of flood, a lot can be done to channelize the rain-water of the monsoon.Metrological section forecasts the weather and quantum of rain-falls in various parts of the country much in advance for taking remedial measures. Besides, why cannot the governments make arrangements on permanent basis to avoid the abovementioned losses each year? There is a need for serious retrospection at the level of Federal Government, Provincial governments and the institution of NDMA to make a strategy for channelizing the rain-water which later turns into uncontrolled flood. Issuing flood warnings, visits of flood affected areas and giving meager amount of compensations is not the solution.
Besides, Pakistan face Indian water terrorism year in various forms and formats. As an upper riparian country, India has always used water of Indus Water System as a weapon to damage Pakistan. During the dry weather India stops the water of all three Eastern Rivers (Sutlej, Ravi and Bias), leaving not even a drop of water for down flow into Pakistan, which goes against the agreed formula of Indus Water Treaty-1960. During rainy season India release heavy water to flood Pakistan. Besides, India has been manipulating with the water of three western rivers (Indus, Jhelum and Chenab) whose water is exclusively meant for Pakistan as per Indus Water Treaty-1960.
Indeed, India has built dozen of water storages, hydroelectric project, water dams and water diversions in its occupied parts of Jammu and Kashmir. This Indian strategy deprives Pakistan from its exclusive rights over the water of three western rivers of Indus Water System. During the on-going monsoon-2024, India has released huge water in all eastern rivers unannounced which, causing heavy floods in all surrounding areas of these rivers. Due to heavy flood in the eastern rivers, thousands of villages and millions of acres of land has inundated. In preceding years, Indian has released huge water in all three eastern rivers, causing flood all along the banks of theserivers. India is doing this water terrorism for decades now without any early warning and without any regard for the laid-down formula in Indus Water Treaty-1960.
In connection with flood control and to avoid the losses, there has been criminal negligence of successive governments in Pakistan. This includes repeated sufferance of the people, their properties and huge infrastructural losses each year in in the low-laying areas of Pakistan. Referring the past disastrous effects of the floods; the monsoon flood of 2010 caused death of over 1700 people, affecting over 20% of the land area, displacing more than 20 million people, and causing loss of billions of dollars by damaging standing crops, infrastructure, housing, agriculture and livestock all over Pakistan. The 2012 flooding affects 4.85 million people in Pakistan, damaging 640,000 houses and huge infrastructure was damaged. In August 2020, Karachi flooding killed at least 41 people across Pakistan. The floods were caused by record monsoon rains, which were inadequately drained by poorly maintained drainage systems in the city.Since last few years, Karachi and Lahore were flooded many a time, causing heavy losses to life and properties of the people but no measures taken to improve the drainage system of these cities.
Unfortunately, no government has planned any mechanism to ensure effective measures to control the flood and its consequent losses. There is an immediate need to work on a mechanism for controlling the floods in Pakistan. The first and foremost requirement of this would be identification of areas for the construction of small and medium size water reservoirs and water storage dams. These water reservoirs and dams would serve four broad objectives; a) stopping the rain water from flowing into low-laying areas which cause flood and destruction, b) utilization of this stored water for agricultural purposes throughout the year through canal system, c) water supply for drinking purposes to areas where there is a shortages of water and d) generating cheap electricity to overcome the power shortages of the country since hydroelectricity is cheapest and cleanest mean of energy. In order to overcome and safeguard against monsoon rains and Indian water terrorism, there is a need to formulate a flood control mechanism in Pakistan under an independent body which should be free of political, provincial, ethnic or any other influence. This body should undertake emergency survey of areas where water reservoirs and water storage dams can be built, keeping in view the abovementioned considerations. This body should consist of experts of related fields who can undertake the responsibilities with determination and foresight.This body should be funded from the budget allocations of Ministry of Environment and NDMA. The body should have a national mandate for safeguarding national interests and interests of the people primarily with three objectives: one; survey and identify the areas where dams and reservoirs can be build, two; construction of facilities for water storage and three; ensuring water storage and its subsequent utilization for irrigation purposes, drinking water and hydroelectric projects.
— The writer is Professor of Politics and IR at International Islamic University, Islamabad.
