A worsening water shortage has gripped parts of Quetta after the All Quetta Water Supply Association and the All Quetta Water Tanker Association launched an indefinite strike, halting deliveries across the city.

Residents said household water storage has begun running dry, with daily life disrupted by the stoppage. Many questioned why WASA's annual budget, worth billions of rupees, has not translated into a reliable municipal supply, leaving the city dependent on private tankers in the first place. Citizens have called on the Balochistan government and civil administration to intervene and resolve the tanker associations' grievances so that water supply can resume, warning that continued inaction will only deepen the hardship.

Associations cite harassment, unfair fines behind strike call

The strike follows a press conference held a day earlier, in which representatives of both associations laid out a list of grievances they say left them no option but to stop operations.

According to the associations, their members operate under government-issued No Objection Certificates (NOCs) for water supply and transport, and have held repeated meetings with the Commissioner of Quetta Division, the DIG Quetta, the Secretary of the Public Health Engineering (PHE) department, the Managing Director of WASA, and other officials to explain their role in supplying drinking water to the city.

Despite holding valid NOCs, the associations said police and district administration have continued what they described as unjustified harassment. They said tanker owners receive no free or subsidized electricity despite the scale of investment .they said we needs the millions of rupees to operate our supply network, and criticised a metering system introduced by PHE, which they said has made it increasingly difficult to run the business viably.

The associations also said that around 20 people connected to the water tanker business, including tractor and tanker operators, have been detained without justification, and that traffic police have been issuing daily fines of between Rs 5,000 and Rs 15,000 against tractor owners . All Water Tanker Association President jameel Achakazi said "this the Business that thousands of families depend on for their livelihood."

Strike to continue until demands are met

Announcing the stoppage, the associations said the strike would remain in effect until their demands are accepted, and apologised in advance to the public, the dairy sector, and hospital patients who they acknowledged would be among the hardest hit.

No timeline for government engagement with the associations has been announced so far.