Water Insecurity and Provincial Politics in Pakistan: A Comparative Study of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Baluchistan

Abstract

Water has become one of the most politicized and contentious issues in the federal system of Pakistan. Although there exists the 1991 Water Apportionment Accord and the Indus River System Authority (IRSA), the four provinces of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Baluchistan still confront very distinct water issues and have distinct policies. The study conducts a comparative examination of water politics of the provinces by analyzing issues of groundwater depletion and inefficient irrigation in Punjab, inter-provincial allocation of water, seawater intrusion, and degradation of the Indus Delta in Sindh, floods, degradation of watersheds, and glacier melting in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and depletion of groundwater and drought in Baluchistan. Using various documents, reports, and secondary sources, the study asserts that such differences are not only the product of distinct hydrology but also arise due to the distinct reliance on agriculture and institutions of the four provinces and the different perceptions of equity and entitlement in light of the 1991 Accord. The analysis reveals that there are some constraints on the federal water governance system in Pakistan in terms of weak enforcement of regulations, lack of data transparency, and interprovincial distrust especially that between Punjab and Sindh. This study shows that in order to address the water insecurity of provinces, there is a need for institutional change which includes increasing the independence of IRSA in terms of regulatory activities, introducing climate-based allocation of water, regulating the use of ground water, ensuring environmental flows into the Indus Delta, and making plans at the federal-provincial level.

Keywords: Politicized, Water Apportionment Accord, Indus River System Authority, Seawater intrusion, Floods, Glacier Melting.

https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.21979243