The impending water depletion crisis

We live in a world where climatic changes due to rising global pollution, deforestation and other factors are affecting the developed and ‘third world’ countries alike. The recent forest fires in the USA and the unprecedented temperature rise in several countries of Europe, is testimony to the vulnerability of even the most developed nations to the ill-effects of global warming.

Among the several disasters triggered by burgeoning ecological pollution, the ossification of fresh and consumable water is the most serious menace to grapple with.

In the last decade not only developing giants like China and India, the sub Saharan African countries but also countries with relatively sound infrastructure like South Africa, have become victims of acute clean water scarcity.

In this bleak scenario of depleting clean water, India too is facing a hefty proportion of the crisis. The latest data by NITI Aayog, makes it clear that by 2020, the water demand will be double the supply.While cities like Bengaluru and Shimla are already on the brink of complete water depletion, the eco- sensitive towns like Dehradun have also begun experiencing the pain of water paucity. After its becoming the provisional state capital in 2000, Dehradun has been under constant onslaught of construction and related felling of trees. The consequential shrinking of rainfall coupled with the rapidly drying springs and lakes has led to the overuse of groundwater which is already limited in Dehradun and other districts of Garhwal region. It is not uncommon for many residential localities to be overtly dependent on water tankers supplied by private enterprises.

Especially during the summer months excess demand along side erratic weather patterns and low accumulative winter snowfall in upper reaches of the mountains have led to a sad state of affairs. As per a government survey, nearly 15,000 fresh water springs have gone dry in the last decade in Uttarakhand. Access to fresh potable water from community taps has become a distant dream for the local people residing on the outskirts of Dehradun. The mismanagement of already available water sources like lakes, rivers and springs has contributed a great deal to this crisis. Dumping of sewage and other solid waste in these water bodies by residents and factories have rendered the once fresh water in them considerably toxic. The drying up river beds have rapidly been encroached upon for construction purpose. This leaves no room for the already ossifying rivers to replenish even in the monsoon period. The rivers Bindal and Rispana in Dehradun which were once sources of seasonal water supply for many parts of the town are classic examples of such water mismanagement. They have almost vanished due to factors like the ruthless encroachment that has taken place over the years. Rispana which used to be 150 metre in width at a few places along its course has now come down to just less than 50 metres. Besides not remaining a sources of clean water anymore, they also flood during the rains, the slums and homes which have been built around its basin.

The responsibility of supplying usable drinking water in Uttrakhand has not yet been taken up by the urban local bodies even after stipulation in the 12th shedule of the 74th constitutional amendment as has been already done in several South Indian states.

 It is high time that the urban local bodies move forward to intervene in the matters of adequate drinking water supply, taking punitive action against wastages by residents and encouraging measures like rain water harvesting and stopping the pollution of water bodies. It is a critical time for the Government to wake up to action and mandate conservation measures like imposing a limit on prodigal usage of water by luxury resorts, hotels and government residential areas. The continuous availability of water in all residential areas can be stopped for few hours a day periodically and the people must be encouraged to share the community handpumps and taps. This is also much in line with the conservation model adopted by Cape Town, where even the most affluent citizens have to queue up to access water from community taps several days in a week. This is an appropriate way to educate people on the value of an indispensable natural resource like water. At a more micro level small farmers and cultivators must be sensitised on and supplied with rain water harvesting techniques. At homes also people have to be educated into procuring water by harvesting rain water and saving gallons by minimising wasteful habits like using shower, bathing tubs and water pipes.

This said, a truly democratic approach is needed, where people work in full cooperation with the government to save not only their city but also the planet from the water depletion.

(The author is a retired officer of Uttarakhand Government)