Former President of Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry and prominent business leader Shahid Rasheed Butt has revealed that the recent torrential rains have not only caused hundreds of deaths and injuries and damaged crops and properties worth crores of rupees but have also wasted billions of dollars worth of precious fresh water. He termed it “national suicide,” emphasizing that such an act is unacceptable and unbearable in a water-stressed country.

Talking to business community, Butt said that water scarcity has been a long-standing issue in Pakistan, yet it has not received due attention from the government. He added that if rainwater harvesting systems were in place, this water could have been a source of life for the agriculture, industry, and energy sectors, instead of becoming a destructive force.

The World Resources Institute ranks Pakistan as the third most water-stressed country in the world. The country wastes about $29 billion worth of water annually, a volume that could meet a large portion of the country’s $180 billion annual economic needs.

Butt demanded mandatory construction of special tanks for rainwater harvesting in all new government, commercial, and residential buildings, a practice already implemented in several countries. Japan and Singapore save up to 80 percent of their annual rainfall, which meets half of their water needs. He argued that water wastage is not just about floods; it is a direct attack on the economy, food security, and national security.

He warned that without immediate and serious measures, Pakistan will face severe water scarcity, agricultural devastation, and a new wave of inflation in the near future. He urged the government to formulate an immediate and comprehensive water policy to turn rain from a disaster into a blessing.