Place an assessment on the freshwater crisis in India and suggest a blueprint for its sustainable management.
Place an assessment on the freshwater crisis in India and suggest a blueprint for its sustainable management. (200 words)
The availability of fresh water is only 3% of the total water resource on the earth. Of this 3 % global water resource, India has only 4% of fresh water. In this 4 %, it supports 17% of the world's population and 15 % of Livestock.
At the time of Independence, the per capita availability of water in India was 6008 cubic meter which has come down to 1540 cubic meter as per 2011 census. This is below the international threshold of 1700 cubic meter. It is estimated that by 2050 per capita availability of water will be limited to 1140 cubic meter. This shows the impending freshwater crisis which India will have to face if timely action is not taken.
Though the country is blessed with mighty rivers and monsoon rainfall of about 3 months which recharges the groundwater and other water storage structure but still India has not been able to tap its water resource which goes waste as run off and leave its population in a state of crisis.
Steps that can be taken to address the issue
- India needs to invest heavily in creating water harvesting structure both in rural and urban areas to prevent the runoff of water during the monsoon.
- The state has to take stringent action on industries polluting river waters.
- The municipalities need to recycle the used water to reuse them in irrigation projects so that the wastage of water is reduced.
- Need to develop crops which require less water for its production.
- Measures like drip and sprinkler irrigation are required to prevent wastage of water in Fields.
- Modern water law is required where Industries must recycle every drop of water they use and there should be stringent punishment for those who violate these laws.
Even after the huge growth of population in India, we can manage the freshwater crisis if we can manage the available water resource in the country. This is the responsibility of all the stakeholders of the society and not just the government. So we must join our hands and take a consistent effort to prevent the impending water crisis in the country.
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