Decrease in water availability threatening agriculture

The water availability in the country has decreased sharply over the last decade and if it is not improved by the year 2020 then Pakistan would reach a level where this problem could disrupt economic activity and hamper health and well-being of the people.
The agriculture production is also suffering badly because of the less availability of water. If the situation prevailed then the issue would get worse in the coming years and we could face a severe water crisis. The usage of available water is also inefficient and it should also be improved.
Pakistan is one of the most arid countries; the per capita availability has decreased to 1,066 cubic meters thus putting us in the ‘high water stressed countries’ category. According to estimates, the water availability as compared to population has reduced sharply in the last 60 years.
The water availability remained very attractive at the time of independence and till 1980s; it was good enough for the agriculture sector. However, in the later years, it dropped significantly while the population kept increasing.
At the current growth rates, Pakistan’s population is estimated to increase from 140 million in 1998 to 267 million by the year 2025 while the availability of water would drop to 659 cubic meter, which is highly alarming and a matter of deep concerns for the policy makers.
Internationally, an indicator is devised to see if a certain country can be classified as water stressed or water scarce country to determine the emerging seriousness of water crisis. This indicator is generally termed as quantity of water available per year per person. If this per capita annual water availability in a country ranges between 1000-2000 m3, this status is said to be water stressed and if this amount of water drops below 1000 m3, the locality in focus is considered to be facing a water scarcity situation.
According to the Mahboob ul Haq Development Centre report 2010-11, the irrigated area in Pakistan increased by 17 percent since 1990-91. This increase in the cultivated area over the last two decades has not been accompanied by any effort to use water efficiently, nor have any steps been taken to increase water storage.
The low availability of water has also reduced our agriculture production. According to the government of Pakistan estimates, Pakistan produces only 0.13 Kg of cereal per cubic meter of irrigated water, which is very low as compared to India and China. Interestingly, the government has not taken any major steps to increase water storage. It is pertinent to mention that Pakistan loses 31.5 million acre feet of water to the Arabian Sea.
The low water availability has played havoc with the yield of different crops including cotton, rice, sugarcane etc. According to the Economic Survey of Pakistan 2010-11, the rice yield dropped by 14.6 percent only in 2010-11. There has been a continuous decline in the yield of rice because of water scarcity. The yield for rice in 2009-10 was 2,387 kilograms per hectare but it dropped to 2,039 kilograms per hectare in 2010-11.
Similarly, the sowing area of sugarcane has dropped significantly only because of water availability. In 2008-09, the sugarcane area remained 1,029,000 hectares, which reduced to 943,000 hectares in 2009-10 and there was a little improvement in 2010-11 and area remained 988,000 hectares. The little improvement was due to high prices of sugarcane but still the farmers find it hard to use canal or river water for irrigation. The yield of wheat also showed a negative trend. In 2006-07, the wheat yield remained 2,716 kilograms per hectare and in 2007-08; it dropped to 2,415 kilograms per hectare. The yield in 2008-09 remained 2,657 kilograms per hectare; in 2009-10 to 2,553 kilograms per hectare while there had been a little improvement in 2010-11 and the yield remained 2,750 kilograms per hectare. If the current population growth rate persisted and water availability dropped then Pakistan could face a famine-like situation.