ISLAMABAD: Federal Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal on Friday said India’s suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty posed a direct challenge to regional peace and Pakistan’s water rights, as he chaired the first meeting of the Task Force on National Water Security.
The meeting was also attended by Federal Minister for Water Resources Mian Muhammad Moeen Wattoo. Ahsan Iqbal directed the formation of a special working group under the Ministry of Water Resources and instructed that practical and implementable recommendations be submitted to the Planning Commission within 15 days.
Officials briefed the meeting that glacier melting in the Hindu Kush–Himalayan region increased by 65 percent between 2011 and 2020. The Siachen Glacier is melting at an estimated rate of 50 to 60 metres annually, while glacier retreat in the Himalayan range has reached up to 30 metres per year.
The minister directed that a technical workshop be convened immediately to convert existing water policies into executable plans. He said climate change had significantly accelerated glacier melt and warned that since 1960, nearly 23 percent of glacier ice had already disappeared.
Ahsan Iqbal cautioned that Pakistan faces the risk of a prolonged water crisis due to climate change, stressing that growing uncertainty in river flows threatens national stability. He said water conservation was essential for ensuring food security and sustaining economic growth.
Emphasising coordination between the federal government and provinces, the minister said the National Water Policy must be implemented in letter and spirit. He said water security was not limited to a single sector but was linked to national survival and sovereignty.
The minister noted that about 80 percent of Pakistan’s water supply depends on river systems and said rapid population growth had further strained available resources. He added that the financial framework for water management was being revised to address emerging challenges.
Highlighting the need to expand storage capacity, Ahsan Iqbal said the Diamer-Bhasha and Mohmand dams would play a central role in strengthening the country’s water infrastructure. He directed Wapda, IRSA, the National Flood Commission and provincial governments to provide technical input to the working group and set a defined timeline for addressing the water crisis.
He said the task force would serve as a platform to propose coordinated and long-term solutions to safeguard Pakistan’s water future.
