Once an abundant natural resource, water is becoming a more valuable commodity. The exponential growth of economy in India has brought in a renewed demand for water for various purposes. As the population increases, so does the need for fresh water. Widespread Manufacturing and industrialization require uninterrupted water supplies. Water is used to cool engines, machinery and to clean vehicles and aircraft parts. Liquid cooling in High- Performance computer is currently an important field of research.
I won't be harping more on the necessity of water or its uses, as any sane person can conceive that life without water is impossible.
Population booms, coupled with climate change, overexploitation, and lack of a collective social conscience, made sustainable use of water a challenge. Scarcity of water puts significant constraints on increasing food production for the growing population, economic growth, and protection of social and environmental goals. Added to this, the increasing competition and conflicts over sharing of shrinking resources result in water scarcity emerging as a significant source of threat to social security and protection of ecosystems.
Growing competition over finite water resources, backed by climate change, will have severe ramifications on India’s food security and the livelihoods of its farmers. It is often “joked” that the 3rd WW will be fought not for territorial integrity but for the basic amenities of life (Drinkable water being the primary component).
The “thirst” of our ever-growing cities is mostly met by overexploiting groundwater, which puts massive pressure on the depleting groundwater level. Freshwater supplies are increasingly coming under the threat of pollution from industrial effluents and municipal waste. The present situation is grim, with the per capita freshwater availability declining from 6008 m3 per annum in 1947 to approximately 2200 m3 per annum after 50 years.
India’s water resources are not evenly distributed. Half of India's annual precipitation falls in just 15 rain-soaked days, making floods and droughts a fact of life in the country. There has traditionally been a scarcity of water in arid regions because of geographical reasons. Presently, we face water scarcity not intrinsically because of geography but mainly due to the lack of an appropriate water management system, calling for a fundamental reassessment of how the country manages water.
India simultaneously witnesses floods in Bihar, drought in MP, heavy rains in Chennai, and a persisting water crisis in the metropolitan cities of Tamil Nadu. What surprises me the most is that it took 70 years and a visionary leader to realize that “Ghar Ghar Jal” is a necessity rather than a luxury.
Traditionally, there has been a close link between water and society in India. In the past, each region had its own water management system synchronous to the sociocultural context, depending on local topography and climatic conditions.
Tanka in Thar, Rajasthan, Johads in the arid North are structures built to catch, hold, and store rainwater in the arid regions. Naulas and Kuhls in the hilly areas of Medieval India had issues of both floods and droughts regularly. The basis of traditional water management in the arid regions was to harness the rainwater through harvesting and conservation. In regions with hilly topography, surface water was harnessed for consumption
The feigned notion of “modernization” eroded India’s rich tradition of local community-level water management systems. However, with a concerted effort of NGOs and enlightened individuals, a steady revival in traditional water management systems has been observed in recent times.
With the country already experiencing water stress, there is an urgent need to augment the water supply in water-scarce and urban regions. A proper and efficient management structure needs to be implemented to make sustainable use of water possible.
A direct step is the need of the hour. Without it, we will be in a similar position as Saudi, where the price of a litre of Water exceeds the cost of Petrol.
- Team Prakriti, IIT Kanpur