Analytical strategies to sense water stress level: An analysis of ground water fluctuations sensing SDGs under pandemic scenario.

Groundwater fluctuation is directly linked with the consumption and wastage of water sources during the pandemic interval. That is why water resource planners directly target water resource and sanitation systems in line with the sustainable development goals (SDGs) concept. In this study, District Multan is designated as a study area with 85 distinct station points data sets from four zones taken to pursue this massive investigation. The data sets are studied analytically and graphically to explore the relationships among critical variables like population, average water consumption, groundwater elevation, water table depth, total consumption, wastage of water during the pandemic days, etc. For in-depth analysis, the statistical approaches are employed on these massive data sets to reveal the trend among each dataset point to generate predictive models. The results revealed that groundwater reservoirs and levels are continuously declining on an annual basis in the meantime, the water consumption and extraction are increasing simultaneously. The consumption during pandemic days has been increased so much at the same time the wastage and total consumption of water is rising a lot in contrast to previous daily consumption and water demand. The coefficient of determination (R-square) values vary from 0.41 to 0.93 in this investigation. It will help the utilization of developed models and water-providing organizations to forecast groundwater instabilities for the future. Moreover, the situation in the study area is very alarming in terms of water stress conditions. This study will help the decision-making agencies to produce a policy following the SDGs concept to control water consumption and higher extraction.

Epidemic Spread and Its Management Through Governance and Leadership Response Influencing the Arising Challenges Around COVID-19 in Pakistan-A Lesson Learnt for Low Income Countries With Limited Resource.

The coronavirus disease (COVID-19) was first reported in China (Wuhan) at the end of 2019. It has rapidly spread over 216 countries, including the USA, UK, Europe, Russia, and many Asian countries. It has affected more than 4.5 million people, and around 0.3 million deaths have been reported globally. Many preventive measures have been adopted worldwide to mitigate its spread. The government of Pakistan has also taken many preventive measures to combat the COVID-19 outbreak, such as rapid response by governance, continuous monitoring of the pandemic spread in the affected areas, and integration of resources from multiple sectors, including health, education, defense, and media. According to global statistics, the number of COVID-19 cases in the country remained remarkably lower than the expected number for the first 169 days, as compared to other countries. A total of 286,674 confirmed cases, including 16,475 active, 6,139 deaths, and 264,060 (92%) recoveries were reported. The study finds that strict adherence to national policies, effective governance, and unity at the national level resulted in better outcomes. Hence, the preventive measures, rapid responses, and strategies adopted for combating the challenges could be adopted as a learning tool for other countries having similar work environments and financial constraints. This paper can help and guide governance/public actions in response to the possible rebound of coronavirus this fall/winter.