The Gwadar water crisis is set to end next year

Gwadar, a regional hub of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor, suffers from an ongoing water crisis after years of chronic. Gwadar water shortages management in the port city of Gwadar, on the southwestern coast of Pakistan's Baluchistan province, poses a serious challenge for local and national authorities. 

Sustainable solutions to water problems

Citizens took to the streets to protest the water crisis and the authorities for failing to pay the tanker companies that have supplied water to the city for the past few months. In fact, the city has been suffering from a seemingly endless water crisis. The Gwadar water crisis will undoubtedly get worse as the annual population growth rate in Gwadar is expected to approach 3% once the port companies start hiring. Meanwhile, governments have not yet found sustainable solutions to water problems. Instead, you pay a tanker company to truck water from the Melani Dam in the neighboring Keqi district, about 150 kilometers from Gwadar city.

Enough water to supply Gwadar

The Mirani Dam holds enough water to supply Gwadar water for a few more months, but the current profit-driven model drains not only the state budget every day, but also government-run aqueducts and canals. It is also ineffective compared to other systems in the pipe. But the government doesn't seem willing to offer a better solution, and the city will have to continue to rely on underwater trucking by private contractors.

Benefited greatly the water shortage

The tanker mafia, as most citizens call them, benefited greatly from the water shortage. Contractors have repeatedly cut off the water supply over payment disputes that have effectively taken the citizens of Gwadar hostage. This time, it's been more than a week since we stopped trucking water into town and forced citizens onto the streets. Gwadar water Polo said Wednesday that Gwadar's nightmare of water scarcity and pollution will end next year. The residents of the coastal city are set to have access .to an adequate supply of clean drinking water.

Water management projects

This comes after the implementation of a number of water management projects, including a distribution pipeline system from three dams, replacement of rusty and broken water lines on the nected to each household, and a desalination plant led by the Baluchistan government and Gwadar Development Authority. It was completed. 2022. In a serious stalemate, as usual, China also offered to play a role in alleviating the water problem by providing about Rs. $2 billion to establish a desalination plant under the supervision of the Gwadar Port Authority (GPA). The Ankara Dam, Suad Dam, Shadi-Gur Dam and reservoirs near Gwadar are interconnected t,o maintain the drinking water supply for Gwadar city," said the deputy director. Planning City, Jawader Abdul Razzaq, in an interview with Jawader Pro.

Clean drinking water

To highlight the details, a water pipeline of about 67 km will be constructed from the Sawad Dam, with the capacity to supply Gwadar with 5 Million Gallons Per Day (MGD) of clean drinking water, at a cost of Rs. Said so put. 3.8 billion. He said about 90% of the works on Shadi Kaur Dam will cost Rs., with a safe drinking water capacity of 2.5 million gallons per day for Shadd Daghar. 3.5 billion completed. He added that. Dagherest of the work is likely to be completed next year.

Sewage leakage to explosive drinking water

The Ankara Dam was built several years ago, and the Ankara Dam with a capacity of 2.70 million gallons per day connects the two dams to ensure continuous supply, especially for the residents of Gwadar who live in the Old City. Regarding water pollution from sewage leakage to explosive drinking water supply lines connected to homes, he said that the old, rusty and broken water line network can be replaced by a modern, highly insulated and modern water supply system. It is said to replace it this project cost  Zhang Baozhong, chairman of China Overseas Port Holding Company (COPHC), said he urgently understands the seriousness of the water problems of the local people in Gwadar, saying that China has provided about a rice field of 1.2 2 billion as a special grant to the government to start the MGD desalination plant.

Construct a desalination plant

He added that the Gwadar Port Authority will complete the project as soon as possible. A GDA official said that the government has agreed to construct a desalination plant with a capacity of 1.2 million gallons per day in Gwadar with the help of Chinese subsidy to provide fresh drinking water .To people in Gwadar city. He said that the allied infrastructure is currently being approved by the CDWP along PC-1 for the construction of the 1.2 MGD reverse osmosis desalination plant. GPA Chairman Naseer Ahmed Kassiani said providing clean water to the people of Gwadar is the main focus of Prime Minister Imran Khan, with 1.2 MGD and 5 MGD salinization plants as part of the PM's package in southern Baluchistan.

Central Development

Meanwhile, under CPEC, Central Development Working Group (CDWP) has approved PC-I to set up five MGD RO plants at a cost of $5 billion for Gwadar to purify or desalinate polluted waters in the deep sea. Gwadar is currently supplied with only 2 million gallons per day of water through an old dam and a series of mobile water trucks. Currently, the water demand in Gwadar exceeds 5 million gallons per day. We are fortunate that all new water management systems that will be operational next year will be water surplus as it was designed with the future water requirements of Gwadar in mind.

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