Deep inside the blue world...

 

 

Access to safe drinking water and India present an unfortunate picture with stark contrast. More shockingly, there is a huge disparity. While hundreds of people die because of shortage of water in states like Rajasthan and Gujarat, which often experience drought-like situation, on the other hand, thousands others are killed in flood every year in states like Bihar, Orissa and West Bengal. The reasons are not tough to gauge. It is inefficient water management! Worldwide, an estimated 1.2 billion people drink unclean water, and about 2.5 billion lack proper toilets or sewerage systems. Over five million people die every year from water-born diseases such as cholera. In India too, about 70 million people in 20 states are in danger due to excess fluoride in water. And around 10 million people are in the death trap due to excess arsenic in ground water. Not to forget that about 10 per cent of population from both urban and rural areas are deprived of regular safe drinking water. Over 85 per cent of the rural population solely depends on ground water which is depleting fast. Though in urban areas, 60 per cent of the population depends on the surface water sources, their availability and quality are dubious. Moreover, population growth is leading to drastic decline in the per capita availability of fresh water which has gone down to around 2,200 cubic metres in 2000 from 5,150 cubic metres in 1947. It is further expected to go down to 1600 cubic metres by 2017. In states like Gujarat, the water table is dropping as much as six metres per year. Four decades ago, the water table was at 30 metres; now it's 152 metres. The scenario is pretty same in Agra. In 1996, groundwater level was 34 metres. Ten years down the line, that dropped to 42 metres. Currently, the water level has fallen 45 metres. The total cost of environmental damage in India amounts to USD 9.7 billion annually, as per the World Bank estimation in 1995. Of it, 59 per cent results from the adverse impacts of water pollution on health. Moreover, it is the poor who suffer the most as they often end up paying 5-10 times more per litre of water than wealthy people living in the same city.

Solution? Rain is the main source of water. It's imperative to realise the importance of preservation of rain water. India receives 400 million hectare meters (mham) of rain and snowfall. Another 20 mham flow in as surface water from outside the country. This totals up to 420 mham, with river flows of 180 mham and 67 mham available as groundwater. If such a huge volume of water is properly preserved and judiciously used, the problem can be tackled to a large extent.

Going back to where we started, there is lot to learn the way Singapore manages its water supply. But then, do we actually care?!?!