A parliamentary panel has appointed a four-member sub-committee to investigate the non-completion of the K-IV water project despite huge expenditure. The decision was taken at a meeting of the Standing Committee on Water Resources, and it signals renewed parliamentary scrutiny of a project that has long been central to Karachi’s water supply plans.
The 14th meeting of the Standing Committee on Water Resources was held under the chairmanship of Ahmad Atteeq Anwer, MNA. The fact that this was the committee’s 14th meeting indicates a sustained programme of work, and the K-IV project was among the matters considered at this session. The appointment of a sub-committee is a formal step that allows a smaller group of members to examine a specific issue in greater depth than the full committee can in a single meeting.
The committee was informed that the WAPDA Act, 1958, presently contains no statutory provisions regarding the creation, jurisdiction, powers, or functions of the security setup. That information, presented to the committee, concerns the legal framework governing the Water and Power Development Authority. The absence of statutory provisions on the security setup, as described, is a gap in the Act that the committee was made aware of during its deliberations. It is a separate matter from the K-IV investigation, but it was part of the information before the committee at the same meeting.
The sub-committee, under the convenorship of Muhammad Idrees, was directed to investigate the non-completion of the K-IV project despite huge expenditure incurred. The direction is clear in its focus: the sub-committee is to examine why a project on which huge sums have already been spent has not been completed. That question — expenditure without completion — is at the heart of parliamentary concern about the project. The convenorship of Muhammad Idrees gives the sub-committee a named lead member who will be responsible for steering its work.
The committee also directed the authorities concerned to clarify whether water theft from the Kachhi Canal had been reported to the relevant departments and whether any action had been taken. Water theft from canals is a serious issue in Pakistan’s irrigation system, because it deprives downstream users of water to which they are entitled and undermines the management of scarce water resources. The committee’s direction asks for two specific clarifications: whether the theft was reported, and whether action followed. Those questions will require a factual response from the authorities concerned.
The committee’s direction on the Kachhi Canal also requires a response. The authorities concerned will need to clarify whether water theft was reported and what action was taken, if any. That response will be considered by the committee alongside the sub-committee’s work on K-IV, as part of its wider oversight of water resources.
For Karachi, the K-IV project matters because water supply is a daily concern for millions of residents. A project intended to augment the city’s water supply, if left incomplete after huge expenditure, represents both a financial loss and a missed opportunity to address a pressing need. Parliamentary investigation, through the sub-committee, is one mechanism by which that situation can be examined and, potentially, addressed.
The meeting also touched on the legal framework for WAPDA’s security setup, with the committee informed that the 1958 Act contains no statutory provisions on that subject. That information may lead to further discussion about whether legislative changes are needed, although the reporting on Tuesday did not indicate a decision on that point.
For now, the concrete outcome of the 14th meeting is the appointment of the four-member sub-committee and its direction to investigate K-IV’s non-completion. Its work will be watched by those concerned with Karachi’s water supply and with the accountability of public expenditure on major water projects.
Source: The Nation, 4 November 2026
