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ISLAMABAD/RAWALPINDI - Owing to sizzling and dry weather, the underground water level has gone down drastically while water level touched dead level in all three dams — Rawal, Khanpur and Simly — aggravating water shortage in the twin cities of Islamabad and Rawalpindi.
Cantonment Board Rawalpindi and Chaklala including Water and Sanitation Agency (WASA) have formally appealed public to not waste water in order to cope up with water shortage being faced by twin cities. Moreover, water supply to service stations was reduced besides water rationing was also started in twin cities.
The underground water level has gone down from 150-200 feet and water level has reduced to dead level in all the three dams providing water to twin cities.
Many wells and tube wells have dried up. Experts said that if it did not rain within 7-10 days acute water shortage could come up.
Meanwhile, various parts of the twin cities were reported without water and masses have resorted to get water from private water tankers and filtration plants. Cantonment Board Rawalpindi Water Engineer Muhammad Attiq said that despite decrease in water supply from the three dams, CBR was striving to ensure provision of water to its consumers by tube wells and other means.
The rural area affiliated with the federal capital, Saidpur model village, is facing acute shortage of water for domestic use and the water supplied to the area is filled with impurities.
The local residents have demanded of the concerned authorities to ensure constant water supply to the area. In addition to the problem of scarcity of water resource, dirty water from the hotels located on the Margalla hills mixes with the water of the streams flowing down to the Saidpur village.
The local residents were of the view that Capital Development Authority supplies water to the area from these water streams with a mix of filth in it.
They have asked CDA to separate the route of sewerage water from the streams so that supply of clean water might be enabled to the area.
Meanwhile, already troubled by loadshedding and sizzling hot summer, residents of New Civil Lines, Rawalpindi, have been facing water scarcity, as old tube well could not fulfill water demand of the area.
Expressing outrage over shortage of water, they complained that water supply from old tube well was just not enough as water consumption increases many times in summer.
They suggested that water lines should be spread from newly installed tube well near Lawyers Hospital to the areas which would help in redressing water scarcity.
Residents demanded Member National Assembly Malik Shakeel Awan to immediately release funds for the spreading of water lines to ensure provision of water supply to the locality.