The water scene is worse than bad

Water is irreplaceable and has no substitutes. The rate of groundwater abstraction at the global level is increasing by 1 to 2 per cent a year; one-fifth of the world’s aquifers have almost dried up; and a large number of traditional water bodies such as tanks, ponds and lakes are depleting at a frightening pace.

In this shocking scenario, the joint report of World Health Organization and Unicef, Progress on Sanitation and Drinking Water (2013), underlined that globally an estimated 768 million people remain without access to an improved source of water. The Inter-Governmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) report, Climate Change: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability (2014), warned that approximately 80 per cent of the world’s population already suffers a severe threat to its water security. These troubled global trends clearly indicate that the world is witnessing a water crisis today. But is it about having too little water or about managing it badly?

To make the water users realise that there is an urgent need to change the way we use and manage this vital resource, the UN has selected ‘Water and Waste – Reduce and Reuse’ as the central theme for this year World Water Day, which is annually celebrated throughout the world on March, 22. Before we discuss about the ways and means of conserving water, it is necessary to highlight some of the notable observations made by some international agencies on the state of availability of water both at the global and national level.

Researchers at NASA studied the satellite data between 2003 and 2013 and made a startling discovery that 13 of the planet’s 37 largest aquifers have almost depleted while receiving little to no recharge. The UN’s World Water Development Report on Water for a Sustainable World (2015) has warned that global water resources may soon meet only 60 per cent of the world’s water demands. Researchers at the Colorado School of Mines caution that nearly two billion people could face severe water shortages by 2050 due to heavy groundwater usage. Evidently, the world is heading towards unprecedented catastrophic water shortage.

Equally alarming is the estimate of the World Bank which indicates that by 2030 India’s per capita water availability may shrink to half, which will push the country into ‘water scarce category’ from the existing ‘water stress’ category. Besides, the World Bank in its latest report, High and Dry: Climate Change, Water and the Economy (2016), has cautioned the Indian government that countries that lack a sufficient amount of water could see their GDP decline by as much as 6 per cent by 2050.

A WHO-Unicef report (2012) estimated that about 97 million Indians lack access to safe drinking water. Reports of water riots pour in from different parts of the country. An estimated 150 million women days and ₹10 billion are lost in fetching water. Acres of crop have withered away.

The Central Water Commission (CWC) estimates that the water resources potential of the country is about 1,869 billion cubic metres (BCM) a year, but the average annual utilisable water is only about 1,123 BCM a year. The UN World Water Development Report on Water and Energy (2014) underlined that that per capita water availability declined three-fold over the past six decades, from over 5,000 CM in 1951 to 1,600 CM in 2011. This is expected to reduce to 1,140 CM by 2050 due to increase in demand for drinking, agriculture, industry and energy.

The Water and Energy report underlines that agriculture alone accounts for about 85 per cent of all water use. Because of reckless exploitation, about 30 per cent of the country’s groundwater assessment blocks have been classified as semi-critical, critical or over-exploited. Experts are of the opinion that reduction in agricultural water use will translate into a substantial increase in water availability for other sectors.

Micro-irrigation is one of the tested options available readily. Field-level studies have proved that drip and sprinkler irrigation can save about 50 per cent of water compared to conventional methods of irrigation in water-intensive crops such as paddy, sugarcane, banana and vegetable crops. The Swaminathan Committee report, More Crop and Income Per Drop of Water (2006), has also highlighted this option. States where groundwater levels have dipped drastically due to reckless exploitation should adopt this technology. Maharashtra, Gujarat and Andhra Pradesh have been very successful in promoting drip irrigation in sugarcane crop.

Besides, volumetric pricing of irrigation water as advocated by the Vaidyanathan Committee Report on Pricing of Irrigation Water (1992) can also lead to efficient use of irrigation water. Water, however, is only one of the inputs for crop production and the pricing mechanism will promote water conservation only to a limited extent. Nevertheless, volumetric pricing of water will provide the desired results if implemented in urban areas where water requirements have multiplied due to changing lifestyles and urban agglomeration.

Farmers’ massive involvement in distributing water to users depending upon availability is the need of the hour. Water Users’ Associations in Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh, for instance, possess the power to manage, maintain and distribute water resources. Efforts need to be taken to institutionalise and strengthen community-based water management in other States as well. The age-old technique of collecting, storing and harvesting rainwater should be made mandatory. A water literacy movement should be launched. The Government should also take immediate steps to repair, restore and renovate traditional water bodies. It is time to take hard decisions before the water scarcity situation goes out of control. Let not the water conservation initiatives taken in summer remain a mere slogan during the rainy season.

Narayanamoorthy is professor and head of the department of economics and rural development, Alagappa University; Alli is an assistant professor in the department of social sciences, Vellore Institute of Technology