Pakistan Gets an Automated Tool for Water Distribution

 
 
 
Pakistan Gets an Automated Tool for Water Distribution

In Pakistan, there had been a manual system for recording river flows, storage and surface water availability, but now the government has decided to remove the outdated river flow monitoring and adopt a new software-operated system to eliminate water-related disputes among the provinces. The modern system, Water Apportionment Accord (WAA) tool, has been developed by the Australian government. Also, Pakistan’s Ministry of Water Resources, IRSA, WAPDA and Provincial Irrigation Departments played a crucial role to keep a record of the water share of the provinces.

According to this development, the WAA tool has been handed over to all provinces and the federal government. This tool will be helpful to forecast flows in the rivers, system losses and gains, and water availability for the crops. After adopting this new tool, there will be no manual recording of flows, storage and withdrawals. This new system aimed at improving mid-seasonal planning. Also, the allocations of provincial water share for Rabi 2022-23 will be designed and based on this WAA. Considering the water crisis in Pakistan, the country needs a politically unbiased and holistic water policy as it has been estimated that water shortage will increase manifold by 2025, and will further affect food shortage.

The water crisis could also result in confrontation between the provinces as river sharing has always been a source of problems in the country. Considering the water disputes between the provinces, there is a dire need to shift to the new automated tool as a precise and trustworthy mechanism for seasonal planning and water sharing among the provinces. Adopting a new and better river flow operated system will solve the water distribution problems among the provinces. Currently, the country is facing severe environmental degradation challenges in one season it had dryness and in the other there were floods, emphasising the need to increase water storage at every stage.

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IMARAT Institute of Policy Studies

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