Multan: Growing uncertainty over the implementation of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) was intensifying groundwater depletion in South Punjab with experts warning that increased reliance on tubewells was driving up irrigation costs and posing risks to agriculture and water security.
Water experts say Pakistan’s aquifers are under mounting pressure as farmers increasingly depend on groundwater to offset shortages in canal supplies.
While the IWT governs the sharing of surface waters between Pakistan and India, groundwater resources fall outside its scope.
According to experts,Punjab withdraws more than 51 million acre-feet of groundwater annually,making Pakistan one of the world’s largest users of groundwater.
They said water tables in several parts of the province were declining by two to three feet each year,while some urban areas were recording annual declines of more than 2.5 feet.
Experts also cited studies ranking the Indus Basin aquifer among the world’s most stressed groundwater systems with extraction exceeding natural recharge from rainfall and river flows.
The falling water table is particularly affecting South Punjab’s cotton and wheat-growing belt, where farmers say they were being forced to drill deeper tubewells and run pumps for longer periods,increasing diesel and electricity costs.
Agriculture experts warned that rising irrigation costs,coupled with unreliable water supplies could reduce crop yields and degrade soil quality.
Cotton,wheat and vegetable cultivation in districts including Multan, Muzaffargarh and Khanewal was already facing increasing pressure,they added.
The groundwater crisis was also affecting rural households.
Experts said the cost of installing and operating tubewells has risen sharply over the past decade while villages dependent on hand pumps and shallow wells face an increasing risk of water shortages and saline intrusion.
They further warned that Pakistan’s continued export of water-intensive crops such as rice and sugar effectively exports large quantities of groundwater,raising concerns over the country’s long-term food security as water resources continue to decline.
Laique Sheikhana,a landowner from Multan, said groundwater levels had dropped significantly in recent years.
“Tubewells that once required drilling to depths of 80 to 100 feet now have to go much deeper before water is found, adding substantial costs even before cultivation begins,” he said.
Another farmer,Malik Akram, said declining groundwater levels had increased pumping hours and fuel expenses,forcing many small farmers to borrow money to keep their tubewells operational during the cropping season.
Farmers urged the United Nations, the World Bank and other international organizations to play their role in ensuring the implementation of the Indus Waters Treaty,saying the growing pressure on groundwater resources was increasing the financial burden on the agricultural sector.