In kharif season, water levels at 2 key Pakistan dams near ‘dead levels'
NEW DELHI: Constant decrease in the flow volume of western rivers - Indus, Jhelum and Chenab - from India has left Pakistan discharging more water than what it's receiving to sustain its drinking water and irrigation needs.
While this appears normal during the pre-monsoon season, the situation may turn grim in the coming weeks as regular desilting and flushing of dams by India in Jammu & Kashmir to increase its own storage capacity will further lessen the water flow to the other side.
The daily water situation report, released by Pakistan's Indus River System Authority (IRSA), shows that the country on Wednesday had to discharge 11,180 cusecs more water than the inflow.
Its collective outflow, measured at different monitoring stations (Tarbela on Indus, Mangla on Jhelum, Marala on Chenab and Nowshera on Kabul river), stood at 2,52,791 cusecs compared to the inflow of 2,41,611 cusecs. More outflow than inflow will eventually lead to a further drop in water availability in two key provinces - Punjab and Sindh - which depend on waters from the western rivers of the Indus system.
On Wednesday, Pakistan's Punjab province, where kharif farming has begun, received 1,14,600 cusecs of water compared to 1,43,600 cusecs on the same day last year - a decline of 20%.
Pakistan is still nearly a month away from getting monsoon rains, but water storage in its two key dams - Mangla on river Jhelum and Tarbela on Indus - has already reached close to their respective 'dead levels' (there are no outlets to drain water from the reservoirs by gravity below the level).
"This means further decrease in water flow from the Indian side may leave Pakistan with few options to facilitate farming operations before the arrival of the monsoon," said an official.
Pakistan's IRSA advisory committee, at its meeting last month, apprehended the crisis when it declared an overall shortage of 21% for the early kharif season (May 1-June 10), noting "sudden decrease" in Chenab's inflows at Marala "due to short supply by India". It expected shortages of 7% in the late kharif season (June 11-Sept 30).
Though the situation will start improving from early next month when monsoon hits Pakistan, the authorities would find regulation of water for regular discharge difficult in the absence of water flow data from India following the suspension of Indus Water Treaty.
India, which has kept the 1960 treaty in abeyance over the Pahalgam terror attack in April, is not under any obligation to share the data with Pakistan in the present situation.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India Today
2 hours ago
- India Today
Magnitude 4.6 earthquake strikes Pakistan
A magnitude 4.6 earthquake struck Pakistan late Thursday, the National Center for Seismology (NCS) reported. The tremor occurred at 8:02 PM IST on June 12, 2025, at a shallow depth of just 10 kilometers, raising the risk of aftershocks. The quake's epicenter was recorded at latitude 27.18N and longitude earthquakes are typically more dangerous than deeper ones, as seismic waves have less distance to travel to the surface, resulting in stronger ground shaking and a higher potential for structural damage and latest earthquake follows several recent seismic events across the region. On Wednesday, Peshawar residents also felt tremors from a magnitude 4.7 earthquake, which had its epicenter in Afghanistan's Hindu Kush mountains at a depth of 211 kilometers, according to Geo News. No damage or casualties were reported. Nearly a month earlier, a 5.3-magnitude quake was felt in Islamabad and several cities across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. That tremor also originated in the Hindu Kush in Karachi, nearly 30 mild earthquakes have been recorded in recent days. Chief Meteorologist Aamir Haider said the Landhi Fault Line, inactive for decades, has become active and is currently going through a normalization sits at the intersection of the Indian and Eurasian tectonic plates, making it one of the most seismically active regions in the world. This geographic positioning frequently results in earthquakes, often with damaging Watch
NDTV
3 hours ago
- NDTV
4.6 Magnitude Earthquake Hits Pakistan, No Casualties Reported
Islamabad: An earthquake of magnitude 4.6 jolted Pakistan, a statement by the National Center for Seismology (NCS) said. As per the NCS, the earthquake occurred late on Thursday, at a shallow depth of 10km, making it susceptible to aftershocks. In a post on X, NCS said, "EQ of M: 4.6, On: 12/06/2025 20:02:04 IST, Lat: 27.18 N, Long: 64.96 E, Depth: 10 Km, Location: Pakistan." EQ of M: 4.6, On: 12/06/2025 20:02:04 IST, Lat: 27.18 N, Long: 64.96 E, Depth: 10 Km, Location: Pakistan. Shallow earthquakes are generally more dangerous than deep earthquakes. This is because the seismic waves from shallow earthquakes have a shorter distance to travel to the surface, resulting in stronger ground shaking and potentially more damage to structures and greater casualties. Meanwhile, residents of Peshawar were jolted by an earthquake on Wednesday, with tremors measuring 4.7 on the Richter scale, Geo News reported, citing the Seismological Centre. According to Geo News, the epicentre of the earthquake was located in Afghanistan's Hindu Kush mountain range, at a depth of 211 kilometres. No immediate damage or casualties were reported following the tremors. This latest quake comes nearly a month after a 5.3-magnitude earthquake struck Islamabad and parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including Mardan, Swat, Nowshera, Swabi, and North Waziristan. That quake also had its epicentre in the Hindu Kush region at a depth of 230 kilometres, with coordinates recorded at latitude 36.63 N and longitude 71.13 E, Geo News reported. Earlier in April, two more earthquakes had hit various regions across Pakistan. Meanwhile, Geo News highlighted that the port city of Karachi has experienced nearly 30 mild quakes in recent days. Chief Meteorologist Aamir Haider explained that the Landhi Fault Line had become active after decades and is currently undergoing a normalisation phase. Pakistan is one of the most seismically active countries in the world, being crossed by several major faults. As a result, earthquakes in Pakistan occur often and are destructive. Pakistan geologically overlaps both the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates. Balochistan, the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan provinces lie on the southern edge of the Eurasian plate on the Iranian Plateau. Sindh, Punjab and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir provinces lie on the north-western edge of the Indian plate in South Asia. Hence this region is prone to violent earthquakes, as the two tectonic plates collide.
Time of India
3 hours ago
- Time of India
Earthquake of magnitude 4.6 jolts Pakistan
Representative image (ANI) ISLAMABAD: An earthquake of magnitude 4.6 jolted Pakistan, a statement by the National Center for Seismology (NCS) said. As per the NCS, the earthquake occurred late on Thursday, at a shallow depth of 10km, making it susceptible to aftershocks. In a post on X, NCS said, "EQ of M: 4.6, On: 12/06/2025 20:02:04 IST, Lat: 27.18 N, Long: 64.96 E, Depth: 10 Km, Location: Pakistan." — NCS_Earthquake (@NCS_Earthquake) Shallow earthquakes are generally more dangerous than deep earthquakes. This is because the seismic waves from shallow earthquakes have a shorter distance to travel to the surface, resulting in stronger ground shaking and potentially more damage to structures and greater casualties. Meanwhile, residents of Peshawar were jolted by an earthquake on Wednesday, with tremors measuring 4.7 on the Richter scale, Geo News reported, citing the Seismological Centre. According to Geo News, the epicentre of the earthquake was located in Afghanistan's Hindu Kush mountain range, at a depth of 211 kilometres. No immediate damage or casualties were reported following the tremors. This latest quake comes nearly a month after a 5.3-magnitude earthquake struck Islamabad and parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, including Mardan, Swat, Nowshera, Swabi, and North Waziristan. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like This Device Made My Power Bill Drop Overnight elecTrick - Save upto 80% on Power Bill Pre-Order Undo That quake also had its epicentre in the Hindu Kush region at a depth of 230 kilometres, with coordinates recorded at latitude 36.63 N and longitude 71.13 E, Geo News reported. Earlier in April, two more earthquakes had hit various regions across Pakistan. Meanwhile, Geo News highlighted that the port city of Karachi has experienced nearly 30 mild quakes in recent days. Chief Meteorologist Aamir Haider explained that the Landhi Fault Line had become active after decades and is currently undergoing a normalisation phase. Pakistan is one of the most seismically active countries in the world, being crossed by several major faults. As a result, earthquakes in Pakistan occur often and are destructive. Pakistan geologically overlaps both the Eurasian and Indian tectonic plates. Balochistan, the Federally Administered Tribal Areas, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Gilgit-Baltistan provinces lie on the southern edge of the Eurasian plate on the Iranian Plateau. Sindh, Punjab and Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir provinces lie on the north-western edge of the Indian plate in South Asia. Hence this region is prone to violent earthquakes, as the two tectonic plates collide.
