70% of the world is made up of water, hence without water life is impossible. Clean water is a blessing in these days as the environment has been endangered by threats like climate change and pollution. Clean water is essential for a healthy life. According to reports, four children die every second in the world due to water-related diseases. In case of awareness about the proper use of water with proper conservation, only 15 percent population is observing discipline and the rules in the whole world.
Discussing the clean water issue in Balochistan, it is a dry piece of land and water available for survival is generally lower than other parts of the country. Scanty rain is a permanent feature of Balochistan. Maximum average rain recorded is 200mm annually, barring a small region with extended monsoon rainfall. In case of drinking water supply, the situation is very bad in the area. Moreover, there is less than 15 percent population which has access to bacteria-free water supply in Balochistan. In other words, the overwhelming majority of the people have limited or no facility of running water.
Moreover, during the first Government of Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif, Balochistan was allotted an additional share of water from floods. The Government of Balochistan did not utilize the additional water available merely because of no infrastructure to take the provincial quota from the Indus River system. To this date, other provinces are using Balochistan’s share because the Government of Balochistan lacks in research and development departments. Whereas, Balochistan can have sufficed water by tapping its underground water resources in Chagai, Kharan and other regions of the province. According to a study Chagai has enough subsoil water to irrigate more than a million acre of land for a single crop. The windmill technology can be used in augmenting water resources in Chagai and Kharan mainly in the Hamun-i-Mashkhel and Nokkundi region. The subsoil water found in Talap ensures the viability of Saindak copper and gold project in Chagai. The experts believed that Talap water reservoir could meet the water needs of Saindak project for the next two hundred years without a recharge. All can be done with having the robust research and development departments in different ministries of Balochistan.
In previous ten years, there have been 70 projects initiated whereas half of them were completed. In last year budget, there were 33 water development schemes identified in the federal budget for 2018, 24 have been earmarked for Balochistan, which include construction of dams or canals and feasibility studies for new projects and improvements in the existing ones. These projects are very pertinent for sustainable growth in Balochistan, else the state has witnessed vivid insurgencies in past on these basic needs. The Federal Government has introduced these projects now it’s the primary job of the Provincial Government to get these projects completed so the basic necessity can be provided to the people of Balochistan. Basic necessities, good standard life, and controlled law and order situation are the things which can subterfuge the deprivation of the people of Balochistan.