You already know that three-fourth of the W ATER SCARCITY AND THE NEED FOR WATER

earth’s surface is covered with water, but only C ONSERVATION AND MANAGEMENT
a small proportion of it accounts for
freshwater that can be put to use. This Given the abundance and renewability of
freshwater is mainly obtained from surface water, it is difficult to imagine that we may
run off and ground water that is continually suffer from water scarcity. The moment we
being renewed and recharged through the speak of water shortages, we immediately
hydrological cycle. All water moves within the associate it with regions having low rainfall
-

hydrological cycle ensuring that water is a or those that are drought prone. We
-

renewable resource. instantaneously visualise the deserts of

-
You might wonder that if three-fourth of Rajasthan and women balancing many
the world is covered with water and water is ‘matkas’ (earthen pots) used for collecting
a renewable resource, then how is it that and storing water and travelling long
countries and regions around the globe suffer distances to get water. True, the availability
from water scarcity? Why is it predicted that of water resources varies over space and time,
by 2025, nearly two billion people will live in mainly due to the variations in seasonal and
absolute water scarcity? annual precipitation, but water scarcity in

fresh water surface Groundwate

offrun
sources 2022-23
most cases is caused by over-exploitation, consequent greater demands for water, and
excessive use and unequal access to water unequal access to it. A large population
among different social groups. requires more water not only for domestic
Where is then water scarcity likely to use but also to produce more food. Hence, to
occur? As you have read in the hydrological facilitate higher food-grain production, water
cycle, freshwater can be obtained directly resources are being over-exploited to expand
from precipitation, surface run of f and irrigated areas for dry-season agriculture.
groundwater. Irrigated agriculture is the largest consumer
Is it possible that an area or region may of water. Now it is needed to revolutionise the
have ample water resources but is still facing agriculture through developing drought
water scarcity? Many of our cities are such resistant crops and dry farming techniques.
examples. Thus, water scarcity may be an You may have seen in many television
outcome of large and growing population and advertisements that most farmers have their

Water, Water Everywhere, Not a Drop to Drink:

After a heavy downpour, a boy collects drinking
water in Kolkata. Life in the city and its adjacent
districts was paralysed as incessant overnight rain,
meaning a record 180 mm, flooded vast area and
disruted traffic.

A Kashmiri earthquake survivor carries water in

the snow in a devastated village.

Fig. 3.1: Water Scarcity

24 CONTEMPORARY INDIA – II

2022-23
own wells and tube-wells in their farms for long-term basis by ensuring functionality of
-

irrigation to increase their produce. But have the tap water connections. (Source: Economic
you ever wondered what this could result in? Survey 2020–21, p.357)
That it may lead to falling groundwater levels, India’s rivers, especially the smaller ones,
adversely affecting water availability and food have all turned into toxic streams. And even
security of the people. the big ones like the Ganga and Yamuna
Post-independent India witnessed are far from being pure. The assault on
intensive industrialisation and urbanisation, India’s rivers – from population growth,
creating vast opportunities for us. Today, large agricultural modernisation, urbanisation and
industrial houses are as commonplace as the industrialisation – is enormous and growing
industrial units of many MNCs (Multinational by the day….. This entire life stands
Corporations). The ever-increasing number of threatened.
industries has made matters worse by exerting Source: The Citizens’ Fifth Report, CSE, 1999.
pressure on existing freshwater resources.
Industries, apart from being heavy users of You may have already realised that the need
water, also require power to run them. Much of the hour is to conserve and manage our
of this energy comes from hydroelectric power. water resources, to safeguard ourselves from
Today, in India hydroeclectric power health hazards, to ensure food security,
contributes approximately 22 per cent of the continuation of our livelihoods and productive
total electricity produced. Moreover, activities and also to prevent degradation of our
multiplying urban centres with large and natural ecosystems. Over exploitation and
dense populations and urban lifestyles have mismanagement of water resources will
not only added to water and energy impoverish this resource and cause ecological
requirements but have further aggravated the
crisis that may have profound impact on
problem. If you look into the housing societies
our lives.
or colonies in the cities, you would find that
most of these have their own groundwater
pumping devices to meet their water needs. From your everyday experiences, write a short
Not surprisingly, we find that fragile water proposal on how you can conserve water.
resources are being over-exploited and have
caused their depletion in several of these cities. M U L T I -P U R P O S E R I V E R PR O J E C T S AND
So far we have focused on the quantitative INTEGRATED WATER RESOURCES MANAGEMENT
aspects of water scarcity. Now, let us consider But, how do we conserve and manage water?
another situation where water is sufficiently Archaeological and historical records show
available to meet the needs of the people, but,
that from ancient times we have been
the area still suffers from water scarcity. This
constructing sophisticated hydraulic
scarcity may be due to bad quality of water.
structures like dams built of stone rubble,
Lately, there has been a growing concern that
reservoirs or lakes, embankments and canals
even if there is ample water to meet the needs
for irrigation. Not surprisingly, we have
of the people, much of it may be polluted by
continued this tradition in modern India by
domestic and industrial wastes, chemicals,
building dams in most of our river basins.
pesticides and fertilisers used in agriculture,
thus, making it hazardous for human use.
Hydraulic
-> Structures in Ancient India
Government of India has accorded highest
-

priority to improve the quality of life and • In the first century B.C., Sringaverapura
-
-

enhance ease of living of people especially those near Allahabad had sophisticated
->
- water
harvesting system channelling the flood
~
-

living in rual areas by announcing the Jal -

-
Jeevan Mission (JJM). The Goal of JJM is to water of the river Ganga.
- > - -

enable every rural household get assured • During the time of Chandragupta Maurya,
- -
supply of potable piped water at a service level dams, lakes and irrigation systems were
-
of 55 litres per capita per day regularly on- extensively built.
-
- WATER RESOURCES 25

2022-23
 • Evidences of sophisticated irrigation works
have
~

also been found in Kalinga, A dam is a barrier across flowing water that
-
-
(Odisha), Nagarjunakonda- (Andhra obstructs, directs or retards the flow, often
- -
Pradesh), Bennur (Karnataka), Kolhapur creating
- -
a reservoir, lake or impoundment.
-
(Maharashtra), etc. “Dam” refers to the reservoir rather than the
- >
structure. Most dams have a section called a
• In the 11th Century, Bhopal Lake, one of the -

spillway or weir over which or through which

largest-
-
artificial lakes of its time was built. it is intended that water will flow either
• -
In the 14th Century, the tank in Hauz Khas,
- -

-
intermittently or continuously. Dams are
Delhi was constructed by Iltutmish for classified according to structure, intended
supplying water to Siri Fort area.
- >

purpose or height. Based on structure and

-
-
Source: Dying Wisdom, CSE, 1997. the materials used, dams are classified as
- - >

timber dams, embankment dams or masonry

-
dams, with several subtypes. According to
the height, dams can be categorised as large
-
~

- -

dams
-
and major dams or alternatively as low
dams,
- >
medium height dams and high dams.

handicap of its colonial past. Jawaharlal Nehru

-

proudly proclaimed the dams as the ‘temples of

-
modern India’; the reason being that it would
-
integrate development of agriculture and the
village economy with rapid industrialisation and
growth of the urban economy.

Find out more about any one traditional

Fig. 3.2: Hirakud Dam
method of building dams and irrigation works.
What are dams and how do they help us
in conserving and managing water? Dams
were traditionally built to impound rivers and We have sown the crops in Asar
rainwater that could be used later to irrigate We will bring Bhadu in Bhadra
agricultural fields. Today, dams are built not Floods have swollen the Damodar
just for irrigation but for electricity generation,
The sailing boats cannot sail
water supply for domestic and industrial
uses, flood control, recreation, inland Oh! Damodar, we fall at your feet
navigation and fish breeding. Hence, dams are Reduce the floods a little
now referred to as multi-purpose projects Bhadu will come a year later
where the many uses of the impounded water Let the boats sail on your surface
are integrated with one another. For example,
-
(This popular Bhadu song in the Damodar
in the Sutluj-Beas river basin, the Bhakra – valley region narrates the troubles faced by
-
Nangal project water is being used both for people owing to the flooding of Damodar river
- -
hydel power production and irrigation.
- -
known as the river of sorrow.)
Similarly, the Hirakud project in the
- >
Mahanadi basin integrates conservation of
⑨ - -
In recent years, multi-purpose projects
water with flood control. and large dams have come under great
-
Multi-purpose projects, launched after scrutiny and opposition for a variety of
Independence with their integrated water reasons. Regulating and damming of rivers
resources management approach, were thought affect their natural flow causing poor sediment
of as the vehicle that would lead the nation to flow and excessive sedimentation at the bottom
development and progress, overcoming the of the reservoir, resulting in rockier stream
26 CONTEMPORARY INDIA – II

2022-23
beds and poorer habitats for the rivers’ aquatic Source: S. Sharma, quoted in In the Belly of
life. Dams also fragment rivers making it the River. Tribal conflicts over development in
Narmada valley, A. Baviskar, 1995.
dif ficult for aquatic fauna to migrate,
especially for spawning. The reservoirs that
are created on the floodplains also submerge
the existing vegetation and soil leading to its Sardar Sarovar Dam has been built over
-

decomposition over a period of time. the Narmada River in Gujarat. This is one
-

Multi-purpose projects and large dams

- - of the largest water resource projects of
have also been the cause of many new India covering four states—Maharashtra,
- -
environmental
- - movements like the ‘Narmada Madhya Pradesh,
- Gujarat and Rajasthan.
Bachao
-
Andolan’ and the ‘Tehri Dam Andolan’ The Sardar Sarovar project would meet the
etc. Resistance to these projects has primarily requirement of water in drought-prone and
been due to the large-scale displacement of desert areas of Gujarat (9,490 villages and
local communities. Local people often had to 173 towns) and Rajasthan (124 villages).
give up their land, livelihood and their meagre Source: http://www.sardarsarovardam.org/
access and control over resources for the project.aspx
greater good of the nation. So, if the local
people are not benefiting from such projects Irrigation has also changed the cropping
then who is benefited? Perhaps, the pattern of many regions with farmers shifting
landowners and large farmers, industrialists to water intensive and commercial crops. This
and few urban centres. Take the case of the has great ecological consequences like
landless in a village – does he really gain from salinisation of the soil. At the same time, it
such a project? has transformed the social landscape i.e.
increasing the social gap between the richer
landowners and the landless poor. As we can
Narmada Bachao Andolan or Save
- see, the dams did create conflicts between
-Narmada Movement is a Non Governmental
-
people wanting different uses and benefits
Organisation
- (NGO) that mobilised tribal from the same water resources. In Gujarat,
people, farmers, environmentalists and
- -
the Sabarmati-basin farmers were agitated
human
- rights activists against the Sardar and almost caused a riot over the higher
Sarovar Dam being built across the
-
priority given to water supply in urban areas,
Narmada river in Gujarat. It originally
- particularly during droughts. Inter-state water
focused on the environmental issues related disputes are also becoming common with
to trees that would be submerged under the regard to sharing the costs and benefits of
dam water. Recently it has re-focused the the multi-purpose project.
aim to enable poor citizens, especially
the oustees (displaced people) to get
full rehabilitation facilities from
the government. Do you know that the Krishna-Godavari
<

People felt that their suffering would not dispute is due to the objections raised by
- ~
-

be in vain… accepted the trauma of -

K arnataka and A ndhra Pradesh
displacement believing in the promise of governments? It is- regarding the diversion
irrigated fields and plentiful harvests. So, of
-
more water at Koyna by the Maharashtra
often the survivors of Rihand told us that they government
- for a multipurpose project. This
accepted their sufferings as sacrifice for the would reduce downstream flow in their
sake of their nation. But now, after thirty bitter states with adverse consequences for
years of being adrift, their livelihood having agriculture and industry .
even being more precarious, they keep
asking: “Are we the only ones chosen to
make sacrifices for the nation?” Make a list of inter-state water disputes.

WATER RESOURCES 27

2022-23
 India: Major Rivers and Dams

28 CONTEMPORARY INDIA – II

2022-23
 Most of the objections to the projects arose RAINWATER HARVESTING
due to their failure to achieve the purposes
Many thought that given the disadvantages
for which they were built. Ironically, the dams
and rising resistance against the multi-
that were constructed to control floods have
purpose projects, water harvesting system was
triggered floods due to sedimentation in the
a viable alternative, both socio-economically
reservoir. Moreover, the big dams have mostly
and environmentally. In ancient India, along
been unsuccessful in controlling floods at the with the sophisticated hydraulic structures,
time of excessive rainfall. You may have seen there existed an extraordinary tradition of
or read how the release of water from dams water-harvesting system. People had in-depth
during heavy rains aggravated the flood knowledge of rainfall regimes and soil types
situation in Maharashtra and Gujarat in 2006. and developed wide ranging techniques to
The floods have not only devastated life and harvest rainwater, groundwater, river water
property but also caused extensive soil and flood water in keeping with the local
erosion. Sedimentation also meant that the ecological conditions and their water needs.
flood plains were deprived of silt, a natural In hill and mountainous regions, people built
-
fertiliser, further adding on to the problem of diversion channels like the ‘guls’ or ‘kuls’ of
-
land degradation. It was also observed that the Western Himalayas for agriculture.
- -
the multi-purpose projects induced ‘Rooftop rainwater harvesting’ was commonly
-
earthquakes, caused water-borne diseases and practised to store drinking water, particularly
-

pests and pollution resulting from excessive in Rajasthan. In the flood plains of Bengal,
- -
use of water. people developed inundation channels to
-

Collect information about flood prone areas of the country

WATER RESOURCES 29

2022-23
 irrigate their fields. In arid and semi-arid
-

regions, agricultural fields were converted into

rain fed storage structures that allowed the
water to stand and moisten the soil like the
‘khadins’ in Jaisalmer and ‘Johads’ in other

=-
parts of Rajasthan.

rainfed
storage
S to

agrin,a
Fig. 3.4
(a) Recharge through Hand Pump
In-the semi-arid> and arid regions of
Rajasthan,
--> particularly in Bikaner, Phalodi
a n d B a r m e r, a l m o s t a l l t h e h o u s e s
-
traditionally had underground tanks or
-
tankas for storing drinking water. The tanks
-

could be as large as a big room; one

household in Phalodi had a tank that was
6.1 metres deep, 4.27 metres long and 2.44
metres wide. The tankas were part of the
well-developed rooftop rainwater harvesting
system and were built inside the main house
or the courtyard. They were connected to
the sloping roofs of the houses through a
pipe. Rain falling on the rooftops would
travel down the pipe and was stored in these
underground ‘tankas’. The first spell of rain
(b) Recharge through Abandoned Dugwell was usually not collected as this would
• Rooftop rainwater is collected using a PVC pipe clean the roofs and the pipes. The rainwater
• Filtered using sand and bricks from the subsequent showers was then
• Underground pipe takes water to sump for
immediate usage collected.
• Excess water from the sump is taken to the well The rainwater can be stored in the
• Water from the well recharges the underground tankas till the next rainfall making it an
• Take water from the well (later) extremely reliable source of drinking water
Fig 3.3: Rooftop Rainwater Harvesting when all other sources are dried up,

30 CONTEMPORARY INDIA – II

2022-23
 Mowsynram & Cherapunjee
receive highestrain
in world,
Fortunately, in many parts of rural and urban
India, rooftop rainwater harvesting is being
successfully adapted to store and conserve
water.-In Gendathur, a remote backward village
in Mysuru, Karnataka, villagers have installed,
-

in their household’s rooftop, rainwater harvesting

- -

system to meet their water needs. Nearly 200

- -
households have installed this system and the
-

village has earned the rare distinction of being

- -
rich in rainwater. See Fig. 3.6 for a better
A kul leads to a circular village tank, as the above -

understanding of the rooftop rainwater

in the Kaza village, from which water is released
harvesting system which is adapted here.
dd as and when required.
Gendathur receives an annual precipitation of

pJ.
Fig 3.5: Traditional method of rainwater 1,000 mm, and with 80 per cent of collection
i
harvesting efficiency and of about 10 fillings, every house
↑M
↑particularly
can collect and use about 50,000 litres of water
in the summers. Rainwater, or annually. From the 200 houses, the net amount
-

palar pani, as commonly referred to in

= of rainwater harvested annually amounts to
these parts, is considered the purest form 1,00,000 litres.
of natural water. Many houses constructed
underground rooms adjoining the ‘tanka’
to beat the summer heat as it would keep
the room cool.

Rooftop rainwater harvesting is the most

common practice in Shillong, Meghalaya.
It is interesting because Cherapunjee and
Mawsynram situated at a distance of
55 km. from Shillong receive the highest
rainfall in the world, yet the state capital
Shillong faces acute shortage of water.
Nearly every household in the city has a Rooftop harvesting was common across the towns
rooftop rainwater harvesting structure. and villages of the Thar. Rainwater that falls on the
sloping roofs of houses is taken through a pipe into
Nearly 15-25 per cent of the total water an underground tanka (circular holes in the ground).
requirement of the household comes from built in the main house or in the courtyard. The
rooftop water harvesting. picture above shows water being taken from a
neighbour’s roof through a long pipe. Here the
neighbour’s rooftop has been used for collection of
rainwater. The picture shows a hole through which
rainwater flows down into an underground tanka.
Find out other rainwater harvesting systems
existing in and around your locality. Fig. 3.6

Today, in western Rajasthan, sadly the Tamil Nadu is the first state in India
-

practice of rooftop rainwater harvesting is on which has made rooftop rainwater

-
the decline as plenty of water is available due harvesting structure compulsory to all
-
to the perennial Indira Gandhi Canal, though the
-
houses across the state. There are
some houses still maintain the tankas since legal provisions to punish the defaulters.
they do not like the taste of tap water.

Indira Gandhi canal WATER RESOURCES 31

to arid
supplies 10
2022-23
Rajasthan.
 B AMBOO DRIP IRRIGATION SYSTEM
-

In Meghalaya, a -
-
200-year-old system of tapping stream
and
-
spring water by using bamboo pipes, is prevalent.
About 18-20 litres of water enters the bamboo pipe system,
gets transported over hundreds of metres, and finally
reduces to 20-80 drops per minute at the site of the plant.

Picture 1: Bamboo pipes are used to divert perennial springs

on the hilltops to the lower reaches by gravity.

Picture 2 and 3: The channel sections, made of bamboo, divert Picture 4: If the pipes pass a road,
water to the plant site where it is distributed into branches, again they are taken high above the land.
made and laid out with different forms of bamboo pipes. The flow of
water into the pipes is controlled by manipulating the pipe positions.

Picture 5 and 6
Reduced channel sections
and diversion units are
used at the last stage of
water application. The last
channel section enables
water to be dropped near
the roots of the plant.

Fig 3.7

1. Collect information on how industries are polluting our water resources.

2. Enact with your classmates a scene of water dispute in your locality.

32 CONTEMPORARY INDIA – II

2022-23
 EXERCISES EXERCISES EXERCISES EXERCISES EXERCISES

1. Multiple choice questions.

(i) Based on the information given below classify each of the situations as
‘suffering from water scarcity’ or ‘not suffering from water scarcity’.
(a) Region with high annual rainfall.
(b) Region having high annual rainfall and large population.
(c) Region having high annual rainfall but water is highly polluted.
(d) Region having low rainfall and low population.
(ii) Which one of the following statements is not an argument in favour of multi-
purpose river projects?
(a) Multi-purpose projects bring water to those areas which suffer from
water scarcity.
(b) Multi-purpose projects by regulating water flow helps to control floods.
(c) Multi-purpose projects lead to large scale displacements and loss of
livelihood.
(d) Multi-purpose projects generate electricity for our industries and our
homes.
(iii) Here are some false statements. Identify the mistakes and rewrite them
correctly.
(a) Multiplying urban centres with large and dense populations and urban
lifestyles have helped in proper utilisation of water resources.
(b) Regulating and damming of rivers does not affect the river’s natural
flow and its sediment flow.
(c) In Gujarat, the Sabarmati basin farmers were not agitated when higher
priority was given to water supply in urban areas, particularly during
droughts.
(d) Today in Rajasthan, the practice of rooftop rainwater water harvesting
has gained popularity despite high water availability due to the Indira
Gandhi Canal.

2 . A nswer the following questions in about 30 words.

(i) Explain how water becomes a renewable resource.
(ii) What is water scarcity and what are its main causes?
(iii) Compare the advantages and disadvantages of multi-purpose river projects.

3 . A nswer the following questions in about 120 words.

(i) Discuss how rainwater harvesting in semi-arid regions of Rajasthan is
carried out.
(ii) Describe how modern adaptations of traditional rainwater harvesting
methods are being carried out to conserve and store water.

WATER RESOURCES 33

2022-23