Islamabad, April 7, 2025: Pakistan is facing a critical water shortage as major reservoirs fall to alarmingly low levels ahead of the Kharif cropping season, raising serious concerns for agriculture and food security.
The Indus River System Authority (IRSA), in its daily report issued on Monday, revealed that storage levels at the country’s three primary reservoirs — Tarbela, Mangla, and Chashma — remain significantly below capacity.
Tarbela Dam is currently storing just 0.081 million acre-feet (MAF) of water, with a level of 1410.07 feet — only marginally above its minimum operational level of 1402 feet. Its maximum conservation level is 1550 feet. Meanwhile, Mangla is holding 0.248 MAF against its 7.4 MAF capacity, with a water level of 1090.80 feet. Chashma Reservoir also reflects minimal reserves at 0.072 MAF.
Despite moderate inflows — 18,600 cusecs in the Indus at Tarbela and 21,800 cusecs in the Jhelum at Mangla — the current storage falls short of seasonal agricultural needs, particularly for the early sowing of cotton and other Kharif crops in Sindh and southern Punjab.
Provincial governments have voiced urgent concerns to the Centre, urging a revision of water distribution plans to ensure minimum irrigation supplies for critical farming zones. Sindh has repeatedly warned that shortages in April and May could delay crop sowing and severely impact yields. Punjab officials have also raised the prospect of canal supply cutbacks if the situation does not improve.
IRSA continues to monitor flows at key barrages. On Monday, inflows and outflows at Jinnah Barrage were recorded at 32,000 and 28,900 cusecs respectively, while Chashma registered inflows of 32,200 cusecs and outflows of 32,000 cusecs. However, at Kotri, a stark disparity was observed, with only 200 cusecs flowing out against an inflow of 4,600 cusecs — signaling restricted water flow to downstream regions.
According to IRSA officials, water allocations are being made strictly based on current river flows and reservoir levels. They added that any further distribution adjustments would depend on rainfall and snowmelt trends in the coming weeks. So far, there has been no major improvement in upstream inflows.
As the water crisis intensifies, federal and provincial authorities are now faced with the dual challenge of managing scarce water resources while safeguarding national food production. IRSA is expected to convene a consultative meeting with all stakeholders later this week to review the situation and consider adjustments to provincial water allocations.
