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New Delhi: Pakistan’s already struggling economy has been additional rattled by the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty (IWT) and shutting down of the Attari-Wagah border following the Pahalgam apprehension assault. Now, Pakistan is witnessing mounting stress across excessive sectors in conjunction with agriculture, well being, fertiliser provide, and accumulate admission to to vital water resources.

Pakistan gets about 80% of the water of western rivers, Indus, Jhelum and Chenab via the now-suspended IWT that drift via India into Pakistan, whereas India’s fragment from the eastern rivers, Beas, Ravi and Sutlej is 20%. As a result of this truth, the suspension of the IWT will hit Pakistan contrivance extra than India.

Agricultural crisis

Agriculture in Pakistan contributes spherical 20% to its GDP and employs over 38% of its labour force. Extra than 80% of Pakistan’s agriculture and spherical a 3rd of its hydropower generation count upon the waters of the Indus basin.

Following the suspension of the IWT, India acknowledged that it goes to limit or divert waters from Ravi, Beas, and Sutlej for odd Indian employ. Even a marginal reduction in river drift may cripple irrigation cycles in key agricultural belts treasure Punjab and Sindh, which count carefully on the Indus map for crops corresponding to wheat, rice, cotton and sugarcane.

The Punjab province alone accounts for 77% of Pakistan’s wheat production, Sindh contributes 15%, while Khyber Pakhtunkhwa accounts for about 5%, and Balochistan 3.5%, in line with US Division of Agriculture recordsdata (2015–2018 averages. Pakistan’s wheat belt is crisscrossed by rivers treasure the Chenab, Jhelum, Ravi, and Sutlej, all of which invent in India. This potential any reduction or disruption in water drift would severely affect over three-fourths of Pakistan’s wheat output.

Districts along the Indus and its tributaries, in conjunction with areas spherical Rawalpindi, Sialkot, Multan, and Bahawalpur, checklist the best wheat production levels (ranging between 450 to 1,200 thousand metric heaps).

Meals costs in Pakistan are already soaring attributable to inner economic woes. Any shock to agriculture output, especially wheat, the staple meals, will additional gas inflation, deepen poverty, and set rural unrest. It would moreover force Pakistan to import grains, straining its fragile foreign alternate reserves.

Medications shortages; well being crisis

Pakistani well being authorities accept as true with initiated emergency measures to stable pharmaceutical provides. Currently, Islamabad relies on India for 30-40 per cent of its pharmaceutical raw provides, in conjunction with Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs) and progressed therapeutic merchandise. Essential existence-saving medication for most cancers, cardiovascular ailments, diabetes, and antibiotics were sourced from Indian manufacturers attributable to their affordability and quality.

India’s division of prescribed pills has requested the pharma exports body to rearrange a checklist of medicines and pharmaceutical merchandise exported to Pakistan.

Reports counsel that Drug Regulator Authority of Pakistan (DRAP) is exploring alternative sources in China, Russia and numerous other European countries.

The country may stare scarcity of vital medicines if speedy steps are no longer taken. The shortcoming of medicines will inevitably end result in a surge in costs, making obligatory healthcare unaffordable for a tidy section of the Pakistani population.

Fertiliser scarcity

India has historically been a predominant vendor of DAP (Di-ammonium phosphate) and urea, excessive fertilisers for Pakistan’s predominant crops. The commerce suspension by Pakistan potential it must now stumble on dearer imports from Gulf countries, China, or Central Asia. This can additional rigidity Pakistan’s economy.