Pakistan's underground water level dropped by 5.6% in eight years: report

The emerging scarcity of underground water in Pakistan has raised concerns about a further decline in water levels across the country, according to a study.

Research conducted by the Pakistan Council for Research on Water Resources (PCRWR) revealed that the level of underground water has decreased by 5.66 percent over the past eight years.

Punjab, has been particularly affected, with 22.84 percent of the region now completely deprived of groundwater.

Additionally, 36.17 percent of Pakistan's largest province is nearing a critical point where its underground water could be completely depleted.

Following Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) is also facing a significant shortage of underground water, with only 32.96 percent of the province being supplied with underground water. 

The reserves of underground water in 41 percent of KP are nearing the end.

In contrast, Sindh and Balochistan have not been severely affected by the scarcity of underground water, with 0.03 percent of these provinces having completely lost their underground water and 0.39 percent close to exhaustion.

The groundwater levels at a depth of up to five feet have remained relatively stable at 1.23 percent. 

However, reserves between five and ten feet stand at a critical 65.54 percent, while water at depths of 10 to 20 feet has increased slightly to 32.72 percent.

The PCRWR report emphasised the urgent need for sustainable water management practices to address the rapidly declining water reserves.