Dr. Banarsi Lal
Water is a critical natural resource for the mankind and the future of our planet. Although water is the largest natural resource, it is a finite and irreplaceable resource that is fundamental to human well-being. Its sustainability is vital to the future well-being of humans and socio-economic development. It is indispensable for the existence of animal and plant eco-systems and is an essential element in the development of economic activities of any nation. It is the most vital resource for the existence of life on earth. No other natural resource is having such an overwhelming influence. Earth three-fourths surface is covered by the oceans. Freshwater constitutes a very small proportion of this enormous quantity. About 2.7 per cent of the total water available on the earth is fresh water of which 75.2 per cent lies frozen in Polar Regions and another 22.6 per cent is present as ground water. Rest of water is available in rivers, lakes, atmosphere water and soil and vegetation. India is having 2.4 per cent of the world’s geographical area, 4 per cent of the world’s water resources and 17.7 per cent of the world’s population. It has been observed that less than one per cent of the world’s fresh water on earth is readily available for human consumption. As the human population grows, the demand on freshwater resources will also grow. Presently the world is facing a freshwater crisis. If per-capita consumption of water resource continues to rise at its current rate, humankind could be using over 90 per cent of all available freshwater within 25 years leaving just 10 per cent for the rest of the world’s species.
Water sustainability refers to the maintenance and availability of clean water for future generations for consumption, agricultural processes and biodiversity. Agricultural sector is currently the largest consumer of freshwater due to its need for irrigation as well as livestock. Climate change is irreversibly affecting water accessibility as extreme water events increase, leading to more droughts and foods. Water is key to improve global health and productivity. The availability of water is falling overtime and water crisis is the fifth highest risk to the society according to the 2020 edition of the World Economic Forum’s Global Risk report. Valuing the multiple uses of water from agriculture to power generation, domestic use, industry, fisheries, ecosystem and livelihoods can help to transform this looming crisis into an opportunity for advancing crisis. Each year, there are about 250 million cases of water borne diseases with around 5-10 million deaths. It is not only people who are threatened by water shortages and pollution, freshwater ecosystems which harbour the world’s greatest concentration of species are among the most vulnerable on earth. Around half of the world’s wetlands have been destroyed in the last 100 years. Two-fifths of the fish are freshwater species and of these around 20 per cent are threatened, endangered or have become extinct in recent decades. Presently the freshwater demand is increasing not only because of demographic pressures but also because of improved living standards, urban and industrial growth. The world’s thirst for water is likely to become one of the most important issues of the 21st century. Global water consumption raised six fold between 1990 and 1995-more than double the rate of population growth and continues to grow rapidly as agricultural, industrial and domestic demand increase. In some areas, water withdrawals are so high relative to supply that surface water supplies are literally shrinking and ground water reserves are being depleted faster than they can be replenished by precipitation. Due to overexploitation of ground water, water tables are dropping and some rivers often become dry before they reach the sea.
Freshwater is available as rainfall, surface water, ground water and atmospheric moisture. All these sources vary over place and time both seasonality and from year to year to year. Over exploitation of water resources, degradation of water recharge structures, paucity of funds, depleting water resources due to failure of monsoon and competing demand on the available water resources are the factors that cause concern on the supply front. On the demand side, factors such as growing urbanization, increase in population, change in life styles etc. also increase the complexity of the problem. Presently many Indian cities do not have enough sources of water and in future, it would have to be transported over large distances as the water is found more away from the cities. The country’s present and future situation can be gauged by the trend in water availability. It has been observed that irrigation alone accounted around 83 per cent of the total water use in 1997-98 on the demand side and it is likely to slow down to 69.5 per cent by the year 2050 due to the impact of technological advancement in irrigation. Demand of water for domestic, industrial and thermal power generation is expected to increase sharply. The limited ground water sources have not been able to keep pace with recharge and discharge to renew the balance. The amount of water available per person in India has decreased steadily over a period of time. It is predicted that the world in the year 2050 will be largely different from what it is today. Water sector will undergo dramatic changes in the years to come. We have no option but to depend on the available sources of water and have the responsibility to save and conserve them without fail.
It is predicted that rivers and their water distribution will become one of the most politicised ecological issues in the near future. Water is scarce even for drinking purpose. India already is facing an alarming situation. Its fragile water resources are stressed and depleting while various sectorial demands are growing rapidly even as about 200 million people in the country do not have proper access to safe drinking water and nearly 1.5 million children under five die each year due to water-borne diseases. The droughts conditions in several parts of the country are on the rise and disputes over sharing of the water resources are becoming grimmer. If the available freshwater resources in India are not managed properly India can face a severe water crisis. At present, six of India’s 20 major river basins already fall into water scarce category. It is expected that by the year 2025, five more basins will be water scarce. According to estimates, by the year 2025, India will face a severe water shortage leading to serious struggles and it is also expected that within a few decades availability of water in the country will be about 1700 to 2000 cubic metres as per person as against the world average of 5000 to 9000 cubic metres per person. India is heading towards a freshwater crisis due to improper management of water resources and environmental degradation which has led to lack of access to safe water supply to millions of people. The freshwater crisis is already evident in many parts of the country varying in scale and intensity depending mainly on the time of the year. Ground water crisis has been caused by human actions. The most tragic part is that water is a finite natural resource and so far no technology has contributed successfully to produce water for mass scale. There is need to frame an appropriate water policy and equally important indomitable conscience of water users to utilize water judiciously are necessary for sustainable utilization of water.
(The writer is Chief Scientist & Head KVK Reasi SKUAST-J)
