Samanganis decry drinking, irrigation water shortage

AIBAK (Pajhwok): Residents in northern Samangan province have voiced concern over the shortage of clean drinking water and irrigation supplies, urging government to take serious measures in this regard.

However, officials assure that efforts are underway to address the issue.

Samangan is an agricultural province where most residents rely on farming for their livelihoods.
In recent years, to counter agricultural water shortages, residents have increasingly resorted to digging deep solar-powered wells independently.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Energy and Water (MoEW) said last year no one was permitted to dig deep wells without legal authorisation.

Several residents expressed concerns over the lack of access to clean drinking water.

They called on the caretaker government to prevent unauthorised digging of deep wells to avoid exacerbating the water crisis in future.

Qari Abdul Basir Hakimi, a community elder in the province, told Pajhwok Afghan News that residents have been suffering from water shortages for years.

He said: “In key areas of Aibak city, the provincial capital — such as New Town, Marklal, Dehjhaki, Tapa Mullah Qurban and others, where tens of thousands of people reside — inhabitants still obtain drinking water through rudimentary means, using rollers, animals, or tankers. In some areas, company-supplied water is sold at very high prices, which many cannot afford.”

He noted that repeated requests have been made to local authorities to establish a large water reservoir in Khuram Sarbagh district, which could supply water to several key areas of Aibak city.

Tash Murad, a farmer from Hazrat Sultan district, reported that his private well — used for both drinking and farming — had dried up, forcing him to abandon cultivation.
He now fetches drinking water from distant locations using animals.

He said: “The only hope for my family and me was our land. The rivers have dried up, the streams have vanished, and there is no water left for farming. If this situation is not resolved, we will be compelled to sell our land and migrate.”

Similarly, Mohammad Musa Haidari, a resident of Hazrat Sultan district, said that dozens of villages, including Asiyabad and Sarqah Afghania, were facing serious difficulties accessing safe drinking and irrigation water.

He explained that during winter, some residents rely on river water — which is unsafe — while in summer, they suffer a severe water crisis.

He also noted that deep wells in parts of the district are often ineffective unless drilled to several hundred metres.

Environmental experts warn that if the water crisis is not properly managed, the province could face severe challenges in the coming years, including famine, mass migration, and environmental degradation.

Mehrabuddin Munib, an environmental expert, said the main causes of the current crisis include the lack of a proper water supply system, insufficient water reservoirs, climate change, recurring droughts, population growth, and the uncontrolled digging of deep wells.

According to Munib, if these issues are not addressed, Samangan would witness a sharp decline in groundwater levels, the collapse of agriculture, land subsidence, environmental destruction, water shortages for future generations, and widespread migration.

He recommended that local authorities expand water supply networks from available resources, ensure that deep wells are dug under technical supervision, and build both small and large water reservoirs.

Additionally, he stressed the need to raise public awareness regarding the importance of water resources, regulate the use of underground water, and prevent unauthorised well-digging to curb the crisis.

Meanwhile, local officials in Samangan reported that four solar-powered deep wells were being constructed in Hazrat Sultan district to irrigate farmland and address residents’ water needs.

Najibullah Khurram, a representative of the Agriculture, Irrigation and Livestock Department, told the inaugural ceremony of a development project that the total cost of the four wells was 27,000 US dollars.

Once operational, they will irrigate around 200 hectares of farmland and improve water access for hundreds of residents.

These projects are being implemented with financial support from Afghan Aid.

On the other hand, Mufti Fazlur Rahman Usmani Samangani, spokesperson for the Samangan governor, told Pajhwok that the local administration was committed to improving water access and would spare no effort in implementing related projects.

He noted that last year, a privately funded water retention dam worth 27 million afghanis was built, addressing flood threats to several villages and helping irrigate hundreds of acres of farmland.
He added that five other small irrigation projects, worth over five million afghanis, have been completed, and 15 additional water projects, worth 220 million Afghanis, have been surveyed, with work expected to commence soon.

Additionally, some Samangan residents had previously urged the Acting Minister of Energy and Water to construct a major dam to resolve the drinking and irrigation water issues faced by thousands.
At the time, Acting Minister of Energy and Water Mullah Abdul Latif Mansoor stated during a visit to Khuram Sarbagh district that efforts were ongoing to begin construction on the dam.

kk/ma