TAXILA: A water crisis looms over the twin cities of Rawalpindi and Islamabad as the water level has decreased in Khanpur Dam and the available water may cater to the needs of its beneficiaries for only 35 days.
Rocks and mounds have become visible in different parts of the reservoir, especially at the main storage site and the spillways, which speaks volume about the impacts of climatic changes and alarming water table reduction. If heavy rainfall does not occur within the next 10 to 15 days, the water level in the dam is expected to fall drastically to almost the dead level.
The authorities said the catchment area of the dam, which included Margalla Hills and Galiyat, had not received enough rain, worsening the situation.
The dam authorities feared that they would have to suspend water supply for irrigation purposes to the provinces of Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa besides curtailing drinking water supply to Rawalpindi and Islamabad.
Officials say they would have to suspend supply for irrigation purposes besides curtailing drinking water supply to Rawalpindi, Islamabad
They said at present water in the reservoir was available only for about 35 days if there is no rainy spell in its catchment areas.
A Wapda official told Dawn on Tuesday that the water level at the dam was 1,935 above mean sea level (AMSL), which was just 25 feet higher than the dead level of 1,910 AMSL.
He said that due to the low rains in the dam’s catchment areas and persistent dry spell, springs in the catchment areas had dried up. The inflow wasrecorded on Tuesday at only 82 cusecs and the outflow 235 cusecs per day.
He added that 90 cusecs per day was being supplied to Capital Development Authority (CDA) and 6.18 cusecs to other civic bodies and small beneficiaries, including the University of Engineering and Technology Taxila. He said that 48 cusecs per day was also released to the KP irrigation department and 42 cusecs daily to Punjab for irrigation.
He said that due to the persistent situation, authorities had planned to suspend water supply to KP and Punjab for irrigation purposes next week.
On the other hand, Wasa has implemented a “Water Control Plan” to manage the crisis, which includes crackdowns on water theft, penalties for water bill defaulters, and restrictions on non-essential water use. Officials warned that without significant rainfall in the next 10 to 15 days, the water level could fall to critical level, possibly exacerbating the situation.
Wasa sources said that a water rationing plan had been prepared for implementation in the second half of May. Wasa Managing Director Mohammad Saleem Ashraf said the daily water demand in Rawalpindi had reached over 50 million gallons, but the supply stood at just 30 million gallons – creating a significant daily deficit of 20 million gallons.
The dam is situated near Potohar Plateau and the village of Khanpur in KP, about 40km from Islamabad and 15km from Haripur. The dam caters to domestic water supplies in Rawalpindi and Islamabad besides supplying water to the agricultural and industrial areas surrounding the twin cities.
Published in Dawn, May 7th, 2025
