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Human
Development
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Developing water resources
By Hamid Alvi
On the economic front President
Pervez Musharaf, at this stage, is
more occupied with the pressing problem
of water shortage than any other issue.
The problem, he says, is critical
considering the rising population,
estimated to hit 225 million twenty
years from now, with water resources
fast depleting. To keep the water
flowing for irrigation purpose and
domestic use, Pakistan needs to build
additional reservoirs, NOW. The president
recently devoted an hour-long address
to the nation on fast media just on
the debilitating water issue. Along
with big dams, small dams could be
of immense value, particularly in
the areas inaccessible to the outlets
from big dams.
 Dr
Khalid Riaz, Co-Chairperson of the
Human Development Foundation, perhaps
the only NGO operating without aid
of Pakistani and foreign governments,
says that in certain areas of Zhob,
life had become unlivable with the
onslaught of drought in the already
water deficit area. The Karezes had
dried up, and orchard, a vital source
of livelihood, was under stress of
extinction.
Realising the gravity of the situation,
the HDF thought up the plan to build
a small delay action dam in the village
Shahabzai of District Zhob. The idea
was to put up an embankment to stop
the rain water from going to no where;
store it in a reservoir thus created;
and use it in the dry season when
the need is maximum but the availability
of water is almost zero. The site
with hills on two sides lent favourably
for the creation of the reservoir.
The work on the dam started on October
28, 2000, with the community agreeing
to contribute labour, local government
chipping in with a small amount of
three hundred thousand in the form
of providing some of the required
machinery and the HDF bearing the
remaining cost. Grass root development
requires mobilizing the community.
The beneficiary, says Dr Shahnaz Khan
of HDF, must participate in a project
if the social change has to be accomplished.
Economic development ushers in social
change and the latter in turn stimulates
further development.
The dam was completed on July 15,
2001, in less than nine months. The
55 ft. high embankment has created
a storage capacity of 30 million gallons,
which was realized in the first rainy
season. HDF claims that besides meeting
domestic needs of fifteen thousand
people, the Shahabzai reservoir is
feeding ten thousand acres of cultivated
land. The total cost added up to Rs2.9
millions, 2.35 million HDF contribution.
The chain reaction in the realm of
social change, became apparent soon
when residents of the neighbouring
village Maroofzai approached the HDF
to perform a similar ‘miracle’
in their area. The survey showed the
potentials were good as like Shahabzai
there were seasonal streams running
by which if dammed could become a
vital source of water in the dry season.
The HDF approved the construction
plan and the work commenced here on
June 7, 2003. This time any help from
local government was missing. But
the Pakistan Poverty Alleviation Fund
(PPAF) had joined the partnership
with substantial financial commitment.
The triangle thus formed had locals
to contribute labour worth Rs six
lakh, HDF the engineering experty,
supervision and related services and
PPAF the funding outside labour. Total
cost of the Dam was to the tune of
Rs2.36 million.
The 36 ft. high earth-fill dam was
ready on August 31, 2003, i.e. in
a period of three months. The reservoir
is already filled to the capacity
which is 20 million gallons. It is
sufficient to provide irrigation water
to a track of land spread over eight
thousand acres, and meet the personal
needs for water of about six thousands
souls.
Perhaps one could do nothing better
in the arid and desolate land of Balochistan
than to provide water to the inhabitants.
One could live without many comforts
but not without water. And it has
been noticed that where there is water
available, the land could produce
tons of premier quality fruit.
A word about HDF. The organisation
was floated in the United States in
1998 by Pakistani physicians for improving
the quality of life among the down
and out of Pakistani society. As a
result of the HDF advocacy with government
of Pakistan to accord high priority
to human development, the President
of Pakistan first appointed a task
force of HDF to look into the matter,
and then on the recommendations of
the Task Force established the National
Commission for Human Development.
Dr Nasim Ashraf Co-Chairperson of
the HDF was asked to head the commission
which he did and resigned from HDF.
He was replaced by Dr Shahnaz Khan
and Dr Khalid Riaz.
The HDF continues to work as a private
body working in education, health
and economic development including
community physical infrastructure
projects without any conflict with
any other organisation doing similar
work. Its programmes are serving about
200,000 needy people. So far HDF has
opened about 200 Child Friendly Schools,
where 5,754 students are studying
including 3,007 girls. Through 115
Adult Literacy Centres, 1,283 adults
have become literate including 986
females. HDF has succeeded in making
about 900 Development Organizations
(DOs) within the communities, among
which 366 are being run by females.
In Economic Development Sector, HDF
has disbursed 54.33 million rupees
to 4,681 borrowers which includes
1,442 females. Overall the current
recovery rate is 96 percent, which
is quite remarkable. Such success
stories must be repeated for sustainable
growth.
[Taken from http://www.nation.com.pk]
Date/Time Last Modified: 6/3/2004 8:24:59 AM
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