Water Security - India's Priority for Nation Building

Seedling
The low-cost KB Drip system provides small time farmers in India with the ability to channel irrigated water, thus giving them the opportunity to work more efficiently and lift themselves out of poverty. The project was developed by International Development Enterprises, backed by the New York-based Acumen fund, which recruits machine shops to make the materials and enlists local retailers to distribute them, all for a profit.

We are on a collision course with nature! 

Households, farmers, industries and ecosystems are increasingly competing for their daily water needs. Global water demand is projected to increase by some 55% to 2050, much of the extra demand coming from manufacturing industries in emerging economies. 

Groundwater is being exploited faster than it can be replenished and is becoming increasingly polluted. By the middle of the next century, over 40% of the world population - 3.9 billion people - could be living in areas under severe water stress as climate change adds to the pressure from economic and population growth.

Economist Adam Smith famously pondered the so-called diamond-water paradox. 

Diamonds are considered vastly more valuable than water, the argument goes, even though we can happily live without polished jewels but we cannot survive without fresh water. 

Unlike other essential goods, like clothing, shelter or food, we take cheap or even free water for granted. It often takes a crisis, such as a major drought or flood, to spur investment and policy reforms in improving water security.

We recommend improving water pricing to recover costs and to reflect the value of water to users and society

This will create better incentives for efficient use, encouraging flexible water allocation mechanisms, improving water governance, investing in innovative storage capacities and restoring the ecosystem functions of floodplains and wetlands.

As Lord Stern recently warned, the extreme weather events witnessed in many parts of the world reflect “a pattern of global change that it would be very unwise to ignore”

India’s ministry of water resources, have already painted a grim picture for the country which has 18% of the world's population with only 4% of the total usable water resources. 

Official data show that the annual per capita availability of water has already been decreased in the past 10 years from 1,816 cubic meters in the year 2001 to 1,545 cubic meter in 2011.

Annual per capital availability of water will further reduce to 1,340 cubic meters by 2025 and to 1,140 cubic meters by the year 2050. Agriculture accounts for more than two-thirds of water use. 65% rainwater runoff goes into the sea, which is a major wastage

Denmark boasts of a high set of skills and competencies in the water sector, including:

·                     Efficient and sustainable water resource management;

·                      Mapping ground water resources by overflying the ground;

·                      Reducing non-revenue water (NRW) by using efficient leakage detection systems; and

·                      Reducing water footprints for agriculture, industry and households by securing water efficiency and reuse of water (efficient waste water treatment).

Reduce, Recycle and Reuse will be the mantra to get away from the impending crisis. 

While the recognition of the risk is extremely important, the awareness level is extremely pathetic. There is a need for urgency on the part of the nation to take the awareness on water crisis, the issues regarding wastage and its impact on the people development at a rapid pace across stake holders like Industries, Institutions and General Public. 

A  Private Public initiative has to be implemented to take the message to the length and breadth of the country on water conservation and 3R. 

Manufacturing and Agriculture are two major industries which consume the maximum of water. An effective conservation policy and 3R adaptation policy should be made mandatory to enable achieving water security.

Large Corporates as a part of CSR initiative should allocate a portion of their  spend on water security systems and take the concept across the SME’s in the country to enable them to become prudent on water management. 

Nodal agencies can be created to make the implementation of water security system effective and a part investment has to come from the stakeholders and the balance through CSR spent.

Ozone Technology can be one of the options for clean water management. This technology, as we understand can help in 

• ·         Purification of potable water
• ·         Purification of sewage water for reuse
• ·         Purification of effluent water for reuse

This technology, which needs a vetting from competent authority, can be used for 3R Water Management and effective implementation through PPP can help counter the risk effectively. 

Probably we owe this for our future generation