Drinking water management for the capital of Pakistan

Third world governments plan and strategize and show their commitment to the efficient and sustainable use of water. But, when putting these strategies into action, implementing agencies always make mistakes, mainly due to organizational inefficiency and incompetence.
The Capital Development Authority (CDA) is the Civic Authority of Islamabad, the capital of Pakistan, responsible for providing drinking water to the inhabitants of the city. CDA currently draws 75 million gallons of water daily from different sources for its population of 6,350,000, but massive leaks in the water supply system mean city dwellers receive a scarce and contaminated water supply. due to a lethal combination of poor water management and incompetence.

Instead of improving water governance, CDA made a massive investment plan to increase the water supply of Ghazi Barotha, Indus River, spending Rs 30 billion.[ 0.5 billion dollars] instead, focus institutional reform to improve weak water governance that encourages overexploitation and overuse of water. The project would be disastrous for public coffers in the scenario of a country facing serious energy crises. In fact, according to the project details, the water would rise from a site that is 915 feet below the level of Islamabad. Therefore, instead of trying to find and build new ones, CDA should focus on efficient use of exciting water resources and rectify the situation simultaneously, while the recipe for today is to manage “every drop of water is vital” .

Rawalpindi is an ancient low-rise ancient city located near the capital of Pakistan and in the monsoonal rainy season facing the problem of flooding. The sad and brutal truth is that in the situation, where the water from the heights of Islamabad is wreaking havoc in Rawalpindi almost every year in the form of flooding from the inundation of the Lai River. [Nullah]. Past records from the last 35 years witness 23 severe floods in Rawalpindi, including a historic flood that occurred in July 2001 (regarded as a national disaster). The root cause of the flooding in Rawalpindi is the CDA administration’s failure to store rainwater from the Margalla hills as 80% of the Lai catchment falls on Islamabad. The Margalla mountains were declared a National Park [reserved forest] by the WWF effort in the year 1980 and now forest in the hills of Margalla converted into a thick natural vegetation cover. Analysis of Islamabad rainfall data from 1980 to 2006 reveals that due to the thick forest cover, it provides an excellent model that the monsoonal rainfall trend is increasing. This climatic feature of Margalla hills which causes flooding in Rawalpindi is completely ignored by CDA management. The original urban planner of Islamabad Constantinos A. Doxiadis and later other international agencies like JICA recommend CDA again and again for an integrated approach by increasing water from the Margalla hills for drinking due to its purity and mitigating flooding in Rawalpindi.

Model City residents are the worst victims of erratic water supply. The existing drinking water supply system in old sectors was executed almost 40 years ago. The authorities involved did not improve the system according to the growing sectors and population of the system despite the fact that the original master plan of the model city was modified many times.

The mega water supply project was justified with the assumption that the city is receiving 60-70 million gallons per day against its requirement of around 147 million gallons. This goes against the factual position, since between 60 and 70% of the water is not accounted for, a figure that is the highest in the world.
The higher percentage of losses speaks for itself of CDA’s efficiency and competence. Although the Capital Development Authority engaged several consultants, including JICA (1988), Nespak (1992), MM Pakistan (Pvt) Ltd (1998) and a special study conducted with the help of the Government of Japan in 2000, for the improvement of the supply system to make it model. All consultants recommended that the first 60% leak should be addressed before exploring for new water resources. Recently, in November 2005, the French Government conducted a study on “strategy for the control and management of non-revenue water” through world-renowned experts on this basic and chronic problem of the water supply system. The study corroborates earlier findings as well.

According to statistics, the per capita water availability in Islamabad is more than 440 liters per person compared to other high-consumption cities in Asia like Shinghai and Seoul, which consume 250 and 210 liters per person respectively. Also, receiving the highest per capita water, Islamabad residents get water for only one hour during the day. In other words, it means that, despite the existence of sufficient water, the residents of the city get a much smaller amount, which is even less than the minimum right of a citizen according to the United Nations charter, that is, 100 liters of water per person per day. The management of the CDA, being a model civic authority, did not recognize this right or recognize water as an economic good. Otherwise, conserving water and meeting the need for it is the best tool to eradicate poverty.

Another bleak aspect that illustrates CDA’s gross negligence and mismanagement is the operating philosophy of unmetered and intermittent water supply, resulting in wasted water at the consumer end. This devastating policy forced the inhabitants to install electric pumps in the water connections due to low pressure. Inadequate and irregular water supply is also one of the root causes of contamination and leaks in the secondary water supply network. In the original water supply plan, it was planned to install meters, but they were later declared obsolete, ostensibly in an attempt to hide a massive leak. An interesting fact that may arouse the curiosity of readers is that water meters were installed in Murree in June 1887 whose system is working. An effective water metering system makes water management accountable for water losses. Islamabad is the only capital where flat rates are charged to consumers regardless of water consumption. Just imagine CDA’s discriminatory policy that a house in fancy neighborhoods that mostly have large pools installed additional illegal hookups charged at the same flat rates as a small house in other neighborhoods. This apartheid policy forced the inhabitants to store more water than was necessary. Not only this, the inadequate and irregular supply of water due to low pressure also forced the inhabitants to install electric pumps on the water connections, drill wells and dig wells to increase the water supply; thus causing unequal distribution and disputes over water. The metering system increases awareness of water consumption in a home and therefore reduces waste and leakage. This, in turn, helps conserve valuable water resources and benefits the environment.

CDA’s track record in managing water resources is an example in itself. For example, in February, March 2005, more than 29 billion gallons of water from the Khanpur and Simly dam overflowed and leaked into the sea, causing another man-made crisis in the following month for residents. The Khanpur Dam alone can meet the capital’s water need until 2050, firstly if its conveyance root is adopted according to the recommendation of JICA, WAPDA and other international experts. The same will also save more than Rs 95 crore annually on electricity bill for water pumping alone. Second, addressing the chronic seepage problem at the Khanpur dam which is 35 million gallons per month.

There is a water crisis to meet Islamabad’s need for water. It is surely a management crisis that is threatening water resources with poor governance. The need is to bridge the gap between top management sitting in the offices and the realities on the ground related to possible existing water resources. The need is to use the additional storage capacity of Simly after the construction of auxiliary spillway, tap water from seasonal water from Margalla Hills streams, optimal use of Khanpur water resource, in addition to digital water meters, it is a cost effective drinking water solution for Islamabad. city. Rain harvesting and water conservation techniques are part of the 2005 building statutes, but are never enforced. The immediate example for CDA authorities is in our neighboring country, where rainwater harvesting is mandatory in many Indian cities. Even the annual requirement of the Palace of the President of India is met with rainwater from its roof.

The above paragraphs, with legitimate facts, are enough to explain that spending Rs 30 billion to bring water from the Indus River would not only be an economic disaster but would also prove to be a catastrophe in terms of operating costs. Efficient management of existing water resources is the call du jour which makes Islamabad the model of water governance for other cities in Pakistan as proposed and planned by the Federal Capital Commission in October 1959 while moving the Karachi capital.