Groundwater and surface water in the mega-irrigation systems of Pakistan: The case for conjunctive management

This case study discusses how conjunctive management should be implemented in Pakistan's mega-irrigation systems in the Punjab and Sindh provinces and attempts to move toward conjunctive management. Some conjunctive management is already happening in the country, but there is much to gain by integrating management of surface and groundwater in mega-irrigation systems.

The study asserts that the provinces of Punjab and Sindh are each endowed with a massive alluvial aquifer underneath their mega-irrigation systems, which makes it possible to collect seepage from irrigated fields and canals and reuse it. The practice has been in use for several decades, but conjunctive management could be strengthened to realize benefits such as an expanded command area, reduced waterlogging that would reduce health problems and damage to housing, and improved capacity to absorb floods or unusual rainfall in the topsoil and shallow aquifers.