Pakistan, April 12 -- Beneath Punjab's fertile fields and bustling cities, a silent crisis is deepening. The groundwater sustaining the province is disappearing at an alarming rate. From 2004 to 2024, water tables in 30 districts have fallen, with 27 seeing sharp declines. Lahore's table dropped 48 feet-from 31 to 79 feet-Pakpattan's by 44 feet, and Multan's by 32 feet. Even subtler losses in Faisalabad, Sheikhupura, and Rahim Yar Khan tell the same story: Punjab's underground lifeline is slipping away.

The depletion is massive. Punjab draws 55 to 60 million acre-feet of groundwater annually, but only 3 to 5 million acre-feet are replenished naturally, according to the Pakistan Council of Research in Water Resources. To compare, Pakistan...