Lahore:
Large cuts of Lahore have been covered with concrete, which prevents rainwater from natural recharge of underground aquifers, which are quickly exhaustive.
According to the Irrigation Research Institute, instead of recharging 10-15 Acre-feet, water was only 1.5 million liters recharged through charging wells under the ongoing monsoon, while the rest is drained in sewers and drains.
Dr. Zakir Hussain Siyal, Director General of the Institute, told The Express Pakinomist that Lahores groundwater level due to insufficient charging falls fast1 to 4 feet annually in different areas.
In Gulberg, the water table fell from 125 to 300 feet, while in other areas it has sunk to 150 feet.
Drinking water is now found as deep as 700-800 feet and even deeper in some places how much of the upper water becomes fallow. To counter this, the department has installed 70 recharge wells, but the results remain inadequate.
With 1,500-1,800 tube wells operating around the clock in Lahore, groundwater extraction is left long. Dr. Siyal emphasized the urgent need for artificial charging systems, underground dams and rainwater harvest through green belts, grounds and galleries.
“Without large -scale charging projects across schools, colleges, universities, housing communities and offices, the underground water level will reach dangerously low levels,” he said.
Artificial charging systems are constructed methods used to replenish underground aquifers by directing excess surface water, such as storm runoff or treated wastewater, in the soil through charging wells, infiltration basins or percolation tanks.
These systems increase the availability of groundwater, reduce the risk of the country’s providence and help control water resources more sustainably in areas facing depletion.
Underground dams are barriers that are built below the soil surface to block the natural flow of groundwater so that it can accumulate and create a hidden reservoir.
Rainwater harvesting, on the other hand, is the practice of collecting and storing rainwater from roof roofs, paved areas or open drainage for later use. The stored water can be used for irrigation, domestic needs or recharging aquifers, reducing the dependence on municipal supply.
