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LAHORE - Defence Minister Khawaja Asif reiterated on Monday that Pakistan was committed to defending the territorial integrity of Saudi Arabia, but made it clear that so far the oil-rich Kingdom had not requested Islamabad to send its troops.

Talking to reporters here, the Minister rubbished reports that Pakistan had already sent troops to Saudi Arabia.

A Pakistani delegation is scheduled to leave for Riyadh on Tuesday (today) to discuss the situation with the Saudi Arabian authorities and see what kind of assistance the Kingdom needed to defend its territories.

Khawaja Asif said any decision to join or not the Gulf-led operation in Yemen will be taken after keeping the interests of the country and the Muslim Ummah in mind.

Replying to a question about the Pakistanis stranded in Yemen, he said that the government would use all options for their safe return to their motherland.

A local TV quoted Foreign Office representative Abdullah Ashraf Asghar expressing concern that 171 Pakistanis stranded in Aden were under threat of a Houthi attack.

The TV also quoted some stranded Pakistanis as stating that intense bombing was taking place in the city of Aden and rebels could also target them.

“Evacuation of Pakistanis from Yemen is underway and all arrangements have been finalised to bring 3,000 citizens back home,” said Khawaja Asif.

The Minister also addressed a seminar held at the Wapda House.

"Water is life, conserve it” seminar was held in connection with the World Water Day.

Addressing the seminar, Khawaja Asif stressed the need for enhancing water storage capacity in Pakistan.

He said that the culture of water conservation through its prudent use in all walks of life will have to be adopted to avoid water scarcity in the country.

He said that Pakistan had been blessed with abundant water resources, however, we do not care while using it, as extravagant use of our resources had become our habit.

The Minister further said that management recovery cost of our irrigation system stands at 20 per cent only, while rest of the expenditures to run the system have to bear by the govt.

The quantum of water, pumped through the tube-well that costs Rs 3,000 is provided to the farmers by the govt for just Rs 85 with the help of irrigation system, he added.

“Since there is no incentive, there is no saving of water and we will continue wasting it carelessly. Water conservation is not the sole duty of the govt, but is a collective responsibility of the society. There is no dearth of water resources in the country. These are sufficient to meet not only the existing but also the future requirements if used judiciously,” he added.

The Minister said that 30 million acres feet of water flows downstream of Kotri Barrage per annum on the average.

He further said that the provinces have consumed 11 to 33 per cent less water of their shares since 1993 as per record of the IRSA.

He emphasised that there should be a national plan for use of water and its conservation including lining of the canals.

He lauded the efforts made by Wapda for creating awareness about water conservation by holding essay-writing and poster-making competitions among the students across the country.

Earlier, Wapda Chairman, addressing the seminar, highlighted the importance of water and emphasised upon its conservation.

He said that Wapda will vigorously pursue the aim of creating awareness for water conservation as part of its corporate social responsibility.

Wapda will not only hold competitions among youth on regular basis but also engage young generation to serve as its Ambassadors to disseminate the authority’s message for water conservation in their areas of influence effectively, he said.

He said that per capita water availability in the country has decreased by 80 per cent since 1951 due to rapid growth in population and depleting water storage capacity of the reservoirs because of sedimentation.

He further said that the country has to face lot of problems if the required steps are not taken for water conservation.

The Chairman said that Wapda has completed a number of water storage projects namely Raised Mangla, Mirani, Sabakzai, Satpara, Gomal Zam and Darawat dams, while construction work on Nai Gaj Dam is in progress.

He apprised the audience that the bid for construction of Kurram Tangi Dam has been opened, whereas detailed engineering design of multi-purpose Mohmand Dam is in process.

He said that Wapda and the Ministry of Water and Power are working on an innovative plan to arrange finances for construction of Diamer Basha Dam Project and the proposal will soon be submitted to the Prime Minister for approval.