The third available strategy, to do better things with the available water , is pursued to the extent that more water-efficient crops are deliberated. Higher water prices risk creating discontent from powerful vested interests and general discontent among the population . On top of this there are rising tensions between the upstream province of Punjab and downstream Sind province. Once put to rest by a treaty between the two provinces, these upstream-downstream tensions are surfacing again as water scarcity is increasing . A community development specialist with the World Bank, Qazi Azmat Isa, told IRIN that the water crisis was not being prioritised as it should.
Water is an issue that transcends all sectors.
Isa said that recent light rains in the capital, Islamabad, would only lead to greater complacency. It will reinforce the approach that everything will work itself out eventually. Ironically, experts argue that Pakistan, which was cited in a 1995 World Development Report as having among the highest water potential per person out of 130 countries, could and should dramatically improve its water situation to overcome the current crisis and prevent future ones. Former secretary at the Ministry of Water and Power, Muhammed Zafarullah Khan, in Islamabad, said that good management of the water system was the major challenge to Pakistan. No major dams have been built in the last 27 years, with Pakistan lagging behind neighbouring countries such as Iran, India, Nepal and Turkey in this regard.