Posted on March, 26 2025

Karachi, 26 March 2025: “Pakistan is at a critical juncture where water stress, climate change, and food insecurity threaten the country's agriculture-driven economy. As a response, it must adopt a strategic and science-based approach to water and land management”. This was stated by the World Wide Fund for Nature-Pakistan (WWF-Pakistan) in its press release on Wednesday. It further said that the ongoing Cholistan Canal debate is a resource-driven conflict that reemphasizes the urgent need for the implementation of a national water policy based on equity and sustainability and investment in conservation and efficiency measures.

Part of the Green Pakistan Initiative, the Cholistan Canals Project aims to irrigate a total of 4.8 million acres (1.9 million hectares) of barren land by constructing six canals- two each in Sindh, Balochistan and Punjab. Five of those canals will be on the Indus River, while the sixth will be constructed along the Sutlej River to irrigate the Cholistan desert in Punjab, Pakistan, with approximately 4,120 cusecs of water.

Commenting on the Cholistan Canals project, Hammad Naqi Khan, Director General, WWF-Pakistan, said that revamping Pakistan's agriculture and water governance is crucial to improving resource efficiency and preventing water distribution conflicts. WWF-Pakistan advocates addressing the issues within existing systems rather than focusing on costly infrastructure ventures. We urge a shift from traditional irrigation methods to nature-based solutions, climate-resilient practices, innovative water management, and sustainable land-use strategies. “We also recommend exploring climate-smart, water-efficient alternatives to traditional canal systems and a comparative feasibility analysis of cost-effective solutions”, he added.  

While the proposed project aims to introduce corporate farming in desert regions, several critical areas require attention, including the implications of depleting water resources in already fertile regions. As upstream diversions are likely to intensify, the Indus Delta will suffer, accelerating seawater intrusion and damaging a fragile ecosystem. WWF-Pakistan warned that increasing soil salinity will render fertile land barren, displacing small-scale farmers and fishing communities. Furthermore, this will lead to the loss of mangrove cover, which serves as a natural coastal defense and breeding ground for marine life. The resulting acceleration in coastal erosion will increase the vulnerability of communities to storms, cyclones, and other natural disasters. Moreover, glacial melt and monsoons, which supply water to the Indus, are becoming increasingly unreliable. Therefore, considering climate change and drought conditions, the project’s sustainability plan must be reassessed, particularly given its reliance on unpredictable flood flows. 

WWF-Pakistan stressed that before launching large-scale irrigation initiatives, it is crucial to conduct comprehensive socio-environmental impact studies along with technically feasible studies involving relevant experts, including agronomists, hydrologists, environmental scientists, and economic analysts. These studies should address several key aspects, including topography and soil suitability for sustainable agriculture, long-term impacts on groundwater levels, recharge rates and ecosystems, as well as the effects on local communities. Additionally, the comparative feasibility of alternative solutions and an assessment of climate resilience and adaptability must be considered.

WWF-Pakistan emphasized that national consensus should be achieved considering the inter-provincial nature of water distribution and the legal, technical, and socio-economic complexities of the project. WWF-Pakistan is a member of the Pakistan Climate Change Council and Punjab Water Commission, and this project, given its scale and nature, should have been brought to these forums. We recommend strengthening regulatory and policy oversight, and projects of this magnitude, such as the Cholistan Canals project, must be reviewed and approved by the Council of Common Interests (CCI).