Islamabad (March 02, 2018): The government will announce first ever National Water Policy by the end of this month.
This was stated by Minister for Power Awais Ahmad Khan Leghari while addressing the concluding ceremony of fourth international conference on use of space technology for water management in Islamabad today.
He said the main features of the national water policy will include reduction in land losses, pricing of water, crop zoning and efficient utilization of water in agriculture sector.
The Minister said water is more serious issue for Pakistan. He said the country is currently facing serious water challenges as its population is expected to rise up to 250 million by the year 2025 which will further reduce per-capita water availability.
Awais Khan Leghari said agriculture is the backbone of the country and the water shortage bears excessive and severe socio-economic impact.
Earlier on Thursday, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi directed for early finalization of water policy after consultation with the provinces.
Chairing a meeting about the National Water Policy in Islamabad on Thursday, he noted that freshwater is progressively becoming scarce.
He said there was an urgent need to take effective measures at the provincial as well as at federal level for not only ensuring optimum utilization, but also for conservation and scientific management of water resources in order to cater to future needs of the country.
Deputy Chairman Planning Commission Sartaj Aziz briefed the meeting on proposed National Water Policy aimed at ensuring effective management and conservation of existing water resources, improving availability, reliability and quality of fresh water to meet critical needs besides addressing the environmental issues.
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