- Development
- Environment
- Culture
- Health and Sanitation
- Policy
Pakistan
Amid Stagnant Water, Residents Wade in Diseases
LAHORE, Pakistan, Oct 10 (Asia Water Wire) – It has been more than six months now, but the sewerage system of a community comprising 180 households in this northern Pakistani city remains completely choked.
Bihar Colony number 2 lies in the vicinity of Kot Lakhpat toward the southern borders of Lahore in the capital of Punjab, the largest of Pakistan’s provinces. Its streets have turned into huge ponds of muddy and filthy water. Mosquitoes, flies and other insects have found refuge in these pools of stagnant water.
A Year after Quake, Sanitation Changes Lives
KARACHI, Pakistan, Oct 2 (Asia Water Wire) - “Since we started using the toilet, we cannot even think of life without one now,” says 70-year old Qasim Jan, grandmother of 10. 
She, along with 17 family members that include her husband, three sons and their wives and their grandchildren, use the one emergency toilet that was built by Catholic Relief Services (CRS) soon after the massive earthquake that shook parts of Pakistan a year ago.
Qasim Jan lives in the beautiful mountainous village of Bari Bandi in Siran Valley in Pakistan’s North West Frontier Province (NWFP).
Days of the Eucalyptus Numbered
LAHORE, Pakistan, Sep 27 (Asia Water Wire) — Debates and a huge outcry are hounding the Punjab government a month after it began cutting down thousands of eucalyptus trees that line this northern Pakistani city.
Endless rows of eucalyptus trees are marked with red, which means they face the axe soon. Many of the trees are along the banks of the canal that passes through the city.
Residents Tired of Leaking Pipes
Amid Monsoons, Karachi Ripe for Outbreak of Diseases
KARACHI, Pakistan, Sep 7 (Asia Water Wire) - Pools of smelly, stagnant water turn a sickly shade of green each day. Drenched, fly- infested mounds of garbage lie unattended for days, emitting a stink so foul that not even the hardiest of scavengers - man, beast or bird - dare venture near them.
Open drains, sewers and manholes overflow with sewage and discarded plastic bags. Mosquitoes swarm and buzz around.
Villagers Pin Hope on Unfinished Bridge
SIALKOT, Pakistan, Aug 30 (Asia Water Wire) – With the promised completion of the 160 million-rupee (3.4 million U.S. dollar) bridge nowhere in sight, 85 villages along the banks of the Jammu Tavi River in the northern part of this country will once again become ‘floating islands’ this monsoon season.
For now, a bridge to nowhere.
For more than half a century, these villages with 70,000 people have been getting a severe beating come rainy season, which practically isolates them from the rest of the world. Located in Bajwat, 20 kilometres north of Sialkot city, the area is prone to severe flooding during heavy rains from July to August.
Rains Send Quake Victims Back to Tent Villages
PESHAWAR, Pakistan, Aug 22 (Asia Water Wire) – Just when they thought it was safe to go home, the displaced survivors of the Oct. 8, 2005 temblor have had to quickly scuttle back to tent villages – and meagre supplies – due to landslides and flash floods triggered by torrential monsoon rains affecting the country.
Translations: Thai
Sales of Water Tanks Rise with Water Woes
ISLAMABAD, Aug 17 (Asia Water Wire) — Khairullah Khan, grappling with inadequate and erratic water supply that sometimes lasts three to four days, is forced to store as much water as he can for his family’s daily needs.
Water, Water Everywhere
Holding her shirtends and wringing the water out, she said, “We were without water for a whole month and now the place is flooded. But yesterday after the rains, even the electricity played truant,” she said. Still smiling, she added, “But the weather is so beautiful.”
Rehana, like all Karachi residents, is quite used to the havoc played by monsoon rains. It fails to dampen their mood for rain is a rarity and this despite the fact that the routine life across Pakistan’s largest city gets completely disrupted when the city comes to a grinding halt.
Communities Give Verdict on Indus River’s Woes
MUZAFFARGARH, Pakistan (Asia Water Wire) - They came from almost every walk of life – farmers, herders, fisherfolk, contractors, engineers and even bankers.
It's time to make a point at the Indus tribunal.
The meeting – called Sindh Sagar Sath or a people’s tribunal on the Indus – was held at Busti Allah Aali on the west bank of the Tanusa Barrage in Muzaffargarh district in early July.
The Taunsa Barrage Emergency Rehabilitation and Modernisation Project is a 123 million U.S. dollar World Bank-supported undertaking. The dam provides water for irrigating over about two million acres of land.
