ISLAMABAD: Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP) Mian Saqib Nisar on Tuesday said that if the necessary pre-emptive measures are not taken on an immediate basis, the country can face severe water scarcity by 2025.
Addressing the inauguration of a new building in the Karachi registry on Tuesday, CJP Nisar said that he came up with the plan of construction of Diamer-Bhasha Dam after seeing decreasing water table in Quetta and Karachi.
He said, “When we made a commission on water, we came to know that there exists a water mafia in the city. We can address the issue with better management. Our eight-month-year-old initiative is yielding results.”
The chief justice further stated that the mineral water companies are using as much as seven billion gallons of water and very soon Rs1/litre tax will be imposed on the water companies.
“Earlier there were zero charges on the companies. But with the imposition of taxes, we can generate taxes worth billions of rupees for the dams fund,” he added.
CJP Nisar said that in the next 30 years, the country’s population can go up to 450 million and the situation demands immediate institutional reforms in the country.
