Running Out of Water
--> Posted on 2009-08-23 14:24:27 By Gurtej SinghDepleting Water Resources and Need for New Water Policy in India
Prime minister Dr Manmohan Singh in his address to the nation on the eve of 62nd Independence Day stressed on the need of having a comprehensive national policy on conservation of water. The ground water resources are being replenished at a drastic rate, which in future will leave the nation on the mercy of monsoon and in a dry year like the current one water scarcity is bound to happen. In months of May and June, Indore faced huge scarcity of water. Municipal corporation employees were beaten up after which the police had to escort water tankers. These incidents will become more common in the coming years in absence of a national policy.
The policy formulation should address following issues
• Depleting underground water resources
• Changes in rainfall pattern
• Global warming
• Interstate water disputes
Depleting underground water reserves is most severe in Punjab & Haryana, largely because of the multi paddy crops sowed over the years. Multi paddy crops means more than one paddy crop in the same year in the same field. This was ultimately banned after a lot of hue and cry. Water level has fallen below 200 feet and farmers have resorted to submersible water pumps. The government should encourage alternate kharif crops and ensure adequate MSP and procurement. Agriculture has largely been limited to wheat and rice. Punjab over the years has witnessed GDP growth which was lower than the national average and in such a situation other crops may well be a blessing in disguise. The same practice of multi paddy crop has been started in Tarai region i.e. Udham Singh Nagar District in Uttarakhand and parts of bordering districts of Pilibhit, Barielly and Rampur in U.P. We Indians have developed a habit of waking up only in crisis, the authorities in these districts have turned a blind eye towards this development and it is only when water level will fall drastically that they will come into action.
The nation has witnessed change in rainfall patterns over the years. Previously monsoon used to be active in North India by last week of June or at maximum July first week, but now this has shifted by 2 weeks or so. This has resulted in more usage of ground water and also it rains well into September which results in crop loss. Moreover floods and draughts have been more prevalent than before, either it doesn’t rain at all or when it rains then it doesn’t seem to stop. Bundelkhand for e.g. has witnessed draught like situation since last 5 years. Its geographical conditions make it unsuitable for irrigation from rivers and canals. Nobody seems to talk about the root cause; all that is talked about is relief package. Bihar was hit by flood last year and this year danger of draught looms large.
According to a latest report, Gangotri is shrinking at a rate of 34 meters per day, twice as fast as two decades ago. At this rate it will disappear by 2030. This may well result in Ganga turning into a seasonal river.
Conflicting interests of states and lack of coordination among them have resulted in wastage of resources and delays in projects. The most prominent are the Punjab & Haryana on Sutlej Yamuna Link River and the Cauvery dispute between Karnataka & Tamil Nadu. The new policy should contain a mechanism for quick readdressing of all the pending issues such as validity of historical agreements in the present context as being demanded by Punjab.
The need is to hold the water within the country and plan for its optimum utilization. One possible solution is interlinking of rivers, a solution hugely debated and rejected for its complications and enormous cost. As far as complications are concerned Britishers successfully build upper Ganga canal way back during 1842-54. This canal is a marvel not only in the field of irrigation but also engineering. Irrigation from the canal was commenced in 1854 and over 7,67,000 acres of land is irrigated through it. Subsequently the lower Ganga canal was built in 1870’s. The point is that if something of that sort can be built in 19th century then there is no case in which it can be replicated in 21st century. We need a web of such canals which can pave way for optimum utilization of our resources.
The government on its part can show some intent by installing rain water harvesting in all the government buildings. This will send out strong signal to the public that it was not just a part of speech from the red fort, indeed we mean to do some serious business. It can be started from railway stations. Railways are big consumers of water. The platform roofs can have this system, the water collected can be used for cleaning and washing of trains and for other purposes as well.
In addition to the policy, habit and practices of entire public will require a change. We need a collaborative effort at all the levels. Awareness by means of advertisements can be generated in which the focus should be on depicting life without water so that people should understand the seriousness of the issue and gauge the reality.
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