Ph.D Defence of Muhammad Ibrahim Khan
Mr. Muhammad Ibrahim Khan, Ph.D. Research Scholar has submitted thesis on “Spatial Assessment of Residential Water Demand, Supply, Management and Its Impacts on Water Quality in Mardan City, Khyber Pukhtunkhwa, Pakistan” to the University of Peshawar, in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.) in Geography.
The oral examination (Public Defence) is scheduled to be held on September 03" , 2026 at 02.00 p.m. in the Video Conferencing Hall, Centre for IT Services, Departent of Physics University of Peshawar. The abstract of the thesis is attached herewith.
All those interested in the said research work may participate in the event. They may raise relevant questions during presentation by the scholar for further evaluation.
Title: Spatial Assessment of Residential Water Demand, Supply, Management and Its Impacts On Water Quality in Mardan City, Khyber Pukhtunkhwa, Pakistan
Scholar Name: Mohammad Ibrahim Khan, PhD Scholar, Department of Geography & Geomatics, University of Peshawar
ABSTRACT
Urban water security is a predominant challenge of the 21st century, particularly in rapidly growing cities of the Global South where infrastructure and governance struggle to keep pace with demand. This research presents a comprehensive hydro-social systems analysis of Mardan City, Pakistan, to diagnose critical vulnerabilities and advance a novel, integrated methodology for assessing urban water security in data-scarce contexts.
The study's primary scientific contribution lies in its mixed-methods framework, which jointly couples high-resolution spatial analytics with advanced multivariate statistical modeling to interpret the complex drivers of water demand. Moving beyond simplistic per capita estimates, we developed predictive models that reveal a critical divergence between per capita and total household consumption. Our analysis identifies and quantifies the seasonally variable influence of key socio-economic and infrastructural determinants—including household size, income, built-up area, and appliance ownership—on water demand, a granular understanding previously absent for the region.
A concurrent geospatial audit of the supply infrastructure exposed a profound and unsustainable reliance on groundwater, quantifying a severe deficit: current supply (2.40 MGD) meets only 16% of the estimated demand (14.59 MGD), necessitating an implausible expansion from 27 to 163 tube wells to bridge the gap. This finding signals imminent aquifer over-exploitation and represents a critical policy challenge.
Furthermore, this study integrates physicochemical water quality analysis into the systemic assessment. A targeted sampling of 39 public and private sources revealed that while most samples were potable, spatial analysis identified localized hotspots of contamination specifically irregularities in turbidity, electrical conductivity, and concentrations of sulphates and potassium—pinpointing specific infrastructure vulnerabilities within the distribution network.
The principal novelty of this thesis is the development of an evidence-based, replicable diagnostic model that interlinks socio-economic drivers, physical infrastructure capacity, and environmental quality to provide a holistic assessment of urban water challenges. The findings deliver a critical baseline and actionable intelligence for policymakers, underscoring the inefficacy of supply-side solutions alone and advocating for urgent demand management and infrastructure protection strategies. This work establishes an essential foundation for future micro-level studies, including the imperative to analyze heavy metals and other contaminants, to guide resilient and sustainable water governance in Mardan City and analogous urban centers globally.