KHANEWAL-Over one billion people across the globe still lack access to improved potable despite unprecedented development and all out efforts and awareness being focused for the purpose across the world.
Speakers made the observation while addressing a seminar held in connection with World Water Day organised by ADB-funded LBDC. They noted with concern that supply of potable water was directly connected with sanitation facility and some 2.4 billion people lacked access to improved sanitation then how come they be declared healthy in broader terms. Disclosing facts an expert from Lahore, Eng Malik Shujaat Ali informed the gathering that to sustain a reasonable quality of living requires about 80 litres of water per person per day, but the average consumption ranges from 5.4 litres (barely enough to live on) in parts of low rainfall countries during the dry season, such as the Sahel, to 500 litres per capita per day in the US; as much of this extra use is carelessly wasteful. He informed that a child born in the developed world consumed 30 to 40 times as much water resources as one in the developing world. The engineers working on Asian development bank’s water project at Mianchannu, namely M Azhar, Shahzad Hameed and Rao Intizar Ali also presented a thought-provoking report jointly prepared by them which revealed that irrigation network of Pakistan was the largest infrastructural enterprise accounting for approximately $ 300 billion of investment (at current rate) and contributing approx $ 16 billion or nearly 25% to the country’s GDP while irrigated agriculture provides 90 percent of food and fibre requirements while barani (rain fed) area contributes the remaining 10 percent. They called for vital care to water to save agriculture. They also presented the theme of ‘managing the water shortage problem rather than solving it’ in line with those countries who resolved the issue.
Jashn-e-Baharan:The five-day annual Spring Festival (Jashn-e-Baharan) 2014 was inaugurated at City Park by MPA Nishat Ahmad Khan Daha and DCO Usman Moazzam on Saturday.  According to details, apart from Jashn-e-Baharan, a colourful cultural festival ‘Lok Mela-2014’ is also being celebrated to attract fun-lovers to project indigenous folk art, crafts, culture and music of the South Punjab.
While addressing the opening ceremony, MPA Nishat Daha said that such healthy activities always provided opportunity to the masses to enjoy beauty of the nature. He said the district government had established City Park over 100 kanal of land to provide healthy environment to the residents of the city and surrounding areas.
He also presented a model of City Park to DCO Usman Moazzam.
On the occasion, a musical evening was also organised where local artists performed live. A large number of people attended the event and enjoyed the cool evening under lights with loud music. “We came here to enjoy the festival which always brought colours of spring with it,” said Ibrar Sial who came with his family. The TMA organised the festival in collaboration with Sports, Agriculture, Education and Revenue departments of the district government. More than 60 stalls have been set up at the festival by various departments, private organization and schools, featuring flowers and handicrafts.