geography - june 2019 · 2019. 6. 29. · disputes, the namami gange project, the flagship...

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Source : www.thehindu.com Date : 2019-06-02

‘JAL SHAKTI’ MINISTRY TO DEAL WITH INTEGRATEDWATER ISSUESRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related

issues in world & India

A new ‘Jal Shakti’ Ministry, in which the erstwhile Ministries of Water Resources and DrinkingWater and Sanitation will be merged, has been formed with Gajendra Singh Shekhawat at itshelm.

Mr. Shekhawat took charge of the Ministry on Friday, a day after he was sworn in as a CabinetMinister. During the election campaign, Mr. Modi had promised to form an integrated Ministrydealing with water issues.

The remit of the Ministry will encompass issues ranging from international and inter-State waterdisputes, the Namami Gange project, the flagship initiative to clean the Ganga, its tributaries andsub-tributaries and the provision of clean drinking water.

In the first Modi government, the project to clean the Ganga was moved from the Ministry ofEnvironment and Forests to the Ministry of Water Resources.

With a greater push and larger monetary allocation, the Namami Gange project was launched.

Mr. Shekhawat said that the priority would be to provide clean drinking water to everyone.

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NAMING OF THE ANTHROPOCENE EPOCH: MOVE IS ACAUTION TO HUMANITY

Relevant for: Geography | Topic: The Earth, its Evolution and Origin of Life on Earth

The pervasive and persistent signatures of modern human activity on the earth have been sostriking that they are set to be officially recognised and named as a new geologic epoch. OnMay 21, the Anthropocene Working Group (AWG) overwhelmingly voted to recogniseAnthropocene as an epoch. The vote gives form to the efforts of scientists, notably the NobelLaureate Paul Crutzen and Eugene F. Stoermer, who coined the term in 2000 to highlight howhuman activity had changed many facets of the earth. So overwhelming is the concept of theAnthropocene that it got mainstreamed in scientific and general literature years ago. The AWGvote is a sobering reminder to humanity that failure to end destructive activities will irrevocablychange the face of the earth and make it uninhabitable. Officially, humans will continue to live inthe Holocene epoch for a couple of years more before the Anthropocene epoch is finally ratifiedby the International Union of Geological Sciences. The vote by the working group will contributeto the formalisation of the Anthropocene as a stratigraphic entity on a par with other geologicepochs. But unlike the others, it will be the first time that the beginning of an epoch would bebased on human activity and not the consequences of changes brought about by nature. Forinstance, the start of the Holocene epoch 11,700 years ago marks the end of the transition fromthe last glacial phase to a period of warming and a rise in sea level. Human activity has beendrastically changing the earth, with the greatest impacts coming from agriculture, large-scaledeforestation, the industrial revolution and increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide, besides thecreation of materials such as concrete and plastic. However, the working group voted to look forunique signatures around the 1950s to define the start of the Anthropocene.

A decrease in deuterium excess, a proxy for climate change, owing to the reorganisation ofNorth Atlantic Ocean-atmosphere circulation was a definitive geologic marker, or golden spike,to signify the base of Holocene. Now, radionuclides from atomic bomb tests from the early1950s are emerging as a favourite golden spike candidate to define the base of theAnthropocene. To be chosen as a geologic marker, the golden spike must be present globallyacross most environments and must be a part of deposits for a geologically significant length oftime. Thus, plutonium isotope Pu-239 with a half-life of 24,110 years will remain detectable formore than 1,00,000 years and continue to exist as uranium 235 when Pu-239 decays. The nexttask is to find a single site from among the 10 sites chosen across the world for inclusion in theformal proposal. Here, coral reefs and Antarctic glacial ice located far from nuclear detonationtest sites might be more suitable as they would not reflect any local spike but a globaldistribution pattern.

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As Prime Minister Modi returns to power, he must swear by the Indian civilisational ethos





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Source : www.hindustantimes.com Date : 2019-06-04

WATER CRISIS: ACT NOW OR PERISHRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related


The summer of 2019 is turning out to be a searing one for most parts of India. If there is onedistrict that is indicative of a massive crisis that could soon unfold across other parts of thecountry, it is Beed in Maharashtra. In 2018, the agrarian district faced a 50% rainfall deficit,leading to the drying of its two main water sources, and reduced groundwater recharge. This hasled to an acute water scarcity this year, resulting in large-scale forced migration from Beed. Thesituation is ominous in other parts of the country as well. According to the Central WaterCommission, water storage in reservoirs in 2019 is less than the storage of last year and is alsoless than the average storage of the past 10 years during the corresponding period. If one readsthis with the Indian Meteorological Department’s second forecast that northwest and northeastIndia could have less-than-normal rains, and private weather forecaster Skymet’s advisory thatVidarbha, Marathwada, west Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat will have “poorer than normal” rainsand southern India will receive below normal rainfall, the overall water scenario looks daunting.

India, in any case, is facing the worst water crisis in its history. According to NITI Aayog’sComposite Water Index, by 2020, 100 million people will be affected by a shortage ofgroundwater in 21 Indian cities, including Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad. And about40% of the country’s population will have no access to drinking water by 2030. It’s not toodifficult to discern why the country is facing such an acute crisis. A report released by a team ofresearchers from Canada’s McGill University and Utrecht University in the Netherlands blamesirrigation techniques, industrial and residential habits combined with climate change for thisproblem. Along with its economic and ecological dimension, the water crisis also has a hugehealth cost. In India, about 200,000 people die every year due to inadequate access to safewater, according to the Composite Water Management Index report (2018). The situation isexpected to worsen as demand for water increases.

While there are no easy solutions, India must turn this crisis into an opportunity by buildingartificial recharging structures, renovating the existing water harvesting systems, cleaning upwater bodies, investing in water recycling, focusing on crops that are not water intensive,improving irrigation efficiency and reducing water leakage, among other things. However, thekey will be to make citizens understand that water is a finite resource and it is critical to reduceconsumption.

First Published: Jun 03, 2019 21:39 IST



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CAN CHANGES IN THE ATLANTIC OCEAN AFFECT THEINDIAN SUMMER MONSOON

Relevant for: Geography | Topic: Indian Climate including Monsoons

Daily commuters walking along a road near Delhi Gate during morning rainfall in New Delhi onFebruary 14, 2019 | File | Photo Credit: Prateek kumar

Changes in the equatorial Atlantic ocean have been known to have an inverse relationship withthe Indian summer monsoon rainfall. This means if there is a cold phase in the Atlantic, it canbring more rainfall to India and vice versa.

Now, researchers from New York University, Abu Dhabi (NYUAD) have shown that thisrelationship has significantly strengthened in recent decades.

The researchers looked at sea surface temperature changes, wind patterns over the AtlanticOcean and compared it with the Indian monsoon patterns for the past 106 years. They studiedhow the relationship has evolved from 1903- 2010 They divided the years into three equal partsand looked at the emerging trend.

“Until 1975, ENSO was the dominant factor affecting the Indian monsoon. Only after the 70s wesee an increasing influence from the Atlantic Ocean. Also during the 70s we note the anomaliesin sea surface temperature increases, not just in Atlantic but across the tropical oceans,”explains Dr. C.T. Sabeerali, a research associate at the Center for Prototype Climate Modelling(CPCM), NYUAD and the first author of the paper published in Geophysical Research Letters.

El Niño–Southern Oscillation (ENSO) refers to the changes in winds and sea surfacetemperatures over the tropical eastern Pacific Ocean. These changes are known to influence theclimate the tropical countries.

El Niño occurs when sea surface temperatures rise to above-normal levels for an extendedperiod of time, The opposite phase of El Niño is called La Niña when sea surface temperaturesdrop to lower-than-normal levels.

El Niño generally suppresses monsoon rainfall; La Niña generally increases it. But therelationship is not that straightforward. There are many years especially past 1990, thisrelationship do not hold.

Not just these two oceans but also changes in the Indian Ocean known as Indian Ocean dipoleplay an important role in our rainfall patterns.

Indian Ocean dipole is an irregular oscillation of sea-surface temperatures in which the westernIndian Ocean becomes alternately warmer and then colder than the eastern part of the ocean.

Anomalous warming of the West Indian Ocean (South Arabian Sea) relative to the East isconsidered a booster for a concurrent Indian monsoon.

The warming or cooling of the Atlantic Ocean (also known as Atlantic Zonal Mode or AtlanticNino) influences the Kelvin waves in the atmosphere. These waves are eastward movingdisturbances in the troposphere (lowest region of the atmosphere, just about 10 km above theground).

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The waves move towards the tropical Indian Ocean and either increase or decrease theatmospheric temperature. This in turn influences the temperature gradient between IndianOcean and subcontinent and thereby affecting the monsoon.

When predicting monsoon patterns, the India Meteorological Department (IMD) should starttaking the changes in the Atlantic Ocean also into consideration.

“Till now, we know that El Niño has the strongest connection with our monsoon. But there havebeen instances where the El Niño predictions have failed. 1997 is a classic El Niño year but themonsoon was normal. This could be due to the fact that other teleconnection features overcomethe effects caused by El Niño,” explains Dr. R.S. Ajayamohan, senior scientist at CPCM,NYUAD and corresponding author of the study.

“IMD should give more weightage to anomalies in the Atlantic sea surface temperature and takein these teleconnections in their forecast models to get a better prediction of our monsoons.”


The study uses tree ring records to reconstruct the Asian summer monsoon back to 1566.

This is in connection with a proposal to ban walkers








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SCIENTISTS CREATE A GLOBAL MAP OF WHEREGROUNDWATER MEETS OCEANSRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related


Aquifers: Regions near active fault lines send greater volumes of groundwater into the oceanthan tectonically stable ones. | Photo Credit: K_R_DEEPAK

Scientists have created high-resolution maps of points around the globe where groundwatermeets the oceans — the first such analysis of its kind that may help protect both drinking waterand the seas.

In a study published in the journal Geophysical Research Letters, researchers from The OhioState University in the U.S. showed that nearly one-half of fresh submarine groundwaterdischarge flows into the ocean near the tropics.

They also found that regions near active fault lines send greater volumes of groundwater into theocean than regions that are tectonically stable.

They found that dry, arid regions have very little groundwater discharge, opening the limitedgroundwater supplies in those parts of the world to saltwater intrusion.

The team worked with researchers at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and the University ofSaskatchewan to combine topographical data from satellites and climate models to show theflow of groundwater around the world’s coasts.

The findings may help coastal communities better protect and manage their drinking water.

“Freshwater-groundwater discharge is a natural line of defense against saltwater intrusion,” saidAudrey Sawyer, an assistant professor at Ohio State.

“It’s a problem that dry regions have as little groundwater discharge as they do because theseare also the places where people are going to tend to look for groundwater to meet theirfreshwater needs,” said Dr. Sawyer.

The research work, the first near-global and spatially distributed high-resolution map of freshgroundwater flow to the coast, could give scientists better clues about where to monitorgroundwater discharge.

When researchers think about coastal water quality and the way water affects the biochemicalmakeup of the world’s lakes and oceans, they typically think about rivers and streams — and forgood reason. Most of the water that gets to lakes and oceans comes from surface watersources. However, groundwater plays an important role, too, carrying minerals and, in somecases, pollutants, to surface bodies of water.

“If you’ve ever been swimming in a lake or in the ocean in the summertime and you go through acold patch, that is probably a place where groundwater is coming out,” Dr. Sawyer said.

“And that’s just one way that groundwater affects surface water — in that case, it’s affectingtemperature, but it also affects the chemistry of the water. These effects can be hard to measure

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over large scales,” he said.

The team started building these images. The research group focuses on groundwater, andrealised that there was limited information showing where groundwater was most likely to flowinto the oceans.

The study found that in some parts of the world, groundwater could be polluting oceans andlakes with nutrients and other chemicals.

Groundwater, for example, can carry higher concentrations of nitrates — a key contributor of thetypes of harmful algal blooms — as well as high concentrations of mercury.

Understanding how and where groundwater gets to surface water could help policy-makerscreate better plans to improve those bodies of water.

The study also found that climate heavily influences groundwater flow, and that cities in dryareas are especially vulnerable to salt water contamination of aquifers.


From 1980-1987, seven blast endemics have occurred in India causing severe losses








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Source : www.hindustantimes.com Date : 2019-06-14

MINING IN INDIA NEEDS A HUMANE APPROACHRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of Key Natural Resources - Minerals & Oil Resources of the World

Opposition from local populations to big development projects has now become de rigeur, thelatest being coal mining in Chhattisgarh. Chief minister Bhupesh Baghel on Tuesday stopped allwork related to iron ore mining in tribal-dominated Dantewada’s Bailadila hills after a five-dayprotest by tribals who claim the shrine of a goddess is located on one the hills and is associatedwith their faith. Mr Baghel also ordered an inquiry into the bogus no objection certificatesacquired from gram sabhas (village councils) and illegal felling of trees in the area. Since theBailadila hill range is a part of Schedule V of the Constitution, it is governed by the provisions ofPanchayats (Extension to Scheduled Areas) Act 1996, which makes the consent of gramsabhas mandatory for any development activity. The mining company in question, the NationalMineral Development Corporation (NMDC), is bearing a loss of Rs 12 crore a day due to theprotests.

In a situation like this — India has seen many such instances — there are valid arguments onboth sides. While the mining companies say that these resources are needed to fuel thecountry’s economic engine, the project affected communities — mainly tribals since India’sforested areas where they live are mineral-rich areas — don’t want to give up the forests sincetheir lives are dependent on them, and they also share a cultural bond with the jungles, an issuethat policymakers sitting in faraway capital cities fail to appreciate and understand. The situationgoes out of hand when tribals find that consent for development projects has been given withoutdue legal process. All is this compounded by the fact that India’s compensation andrehabilitation record is bad.

A sustainable mining policy, as laid out in the National Mining Policy 2019, could bring about aquantum jump in employment generation and even benefit the environment. Mining in India alsoneeds a huge upgrade in technology to make it safer and cleaner. More importantly, the IndianState and the companies must follow the rules in letter and spirit when it comes to acquiringconsent, and also use the district mineral funds, a neat pile of cash contributed by miningcompanies, for things that communities require and not just what the authorities think to beuseful.

As it stands now, mining contributes just 2% of India’s GDP against 5% for China. While China’smethods may be less than democratic, India has in place the appropriate legislation and checksand balances to increase the potential of this industry. The Chhattisgarh example shouldoccasion a rethink on the issue of sustainable mining.

First Published: Jun 13, 2019 18:02 IST



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HEAD OF 32,000-YEAR-OLD WOLF FOUND IN RUSSIANARCTIC

Relevant for: Geography | Topic: The Earth, its Evolution and Origin of Life on Earth

The head of an Ice Age wolf, which is covered with thick fur . | Photo Credit: Valery Plotnikov

A first intact head of a gigantic adult wolf which died about 32,000 years ago and was preservedin permafrost has been found in the Russian Arctic, scientists said on Friday.

Covered with thick fur, the head was found by a local on the banks of the Tirekhtyakh River inRussia’s remote Arctic region of Yakutia last summer.

It features a well-preserved brain, soft tissue and a set of powerful teeth and measures 41.5 cmin length.

By comparison, the torso of a modern-day wolf is between 66 and 86 centimetres long.

The head was handed to local palaeontologists who teamed up with scientists from the JikeiUniversity School of Medicine in Tokyo to study it.

“It is the first ever such find,” Albert Protopopov, head of mammoth fauna studies at the YakutiaAcademy of Sciences, said on Friday.

“Only cubs have been discovered before.”

Research shows the animal died about 32,000 years ago in the Pleistocene epoch, when themost recent Ice Age occurred.

The wolf is believed to have been between two and four years old when it died.

The Pleistocene epoch was the time when megafauna such as woolly mammoths roamed theEarth.

Protopopov said the scientists from Russia, Japan and Sweden would continue to study thehead.

“We are hoping to understand whether this was a separate subspecies,” he added.

Several species of ancient wolf lived during the Ice Age, including now-extinct dire wolf thatfeatured in the popular TV series Game of Thrones.


New find is bigger in size than one discovered in 2016, also in Arunachal Pradesh

The Nandankanan Zoological Park (NZP) has lost one of its beloved members — 41-year-oldOrangutan, an extant species of great apes.According to NZP,


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PM WRITES TO VILLAGE CHIEFS TO SAVERAINWATERRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related


Valuing each drop:A woman enjoying the monsoon rain on the outskirts of Guwahati onSaturday.Ritu Raj Konwar

Concerned about the water crisis in rural areas, Prime Minister Narendra Modi has written apersonal letter to gram pradhans (village chiefs) requesting them to conserve rainwater.

The letter, signed by the PM, has been hand-delivered to the pradhans through the respectiveDistrict Magistrates or Collectors.

In several rural belts, the PM’s letter has become a talking point. For instance, at Sonbhadranear Mr. Modi’s constituency in Varanasi, the letter has been delivered to 637 village chiefs,requesting them to make personal efforts to encourage people to start conserving rainwater.

Written in Hindi with a personal touch, the PM says, “Dear Sarpanchji , namaskar . I hope thatyou and all my brothers and sisters of the panchayat would be in the best of health. The rainyseason is about to begin. We are grateful to God that we have been blessed by enoughrainwater. We should make all efforts and arrange to conserve this blessing.” The PM has madea request to the pradhans in his one-page letter that they should convene a meeting of the gramsabha (village assembly) and his message be read out. “It is requested that a discussion shouldbe held in the village ... I have faith in all of you that adequate arrangements would be made tosave every drop.”








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INDIA TO HOST UN MEET ON LAND DEGRADATION INSEPTEMBERRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Land Resources incl. Land conservation

in world & India

Lost cover:A view of rampant deforestation in the Karbi Anglong district of Assam.Ritu RajKonwar;Ritu_Raj_Konwar - Ritu Raj Konwar

India for the first time will host the 14th session of the Conference of Parties (COP-14) of theUnited Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) in September.

It will see participation from at least 5,000 delegates from nearly 197 countries and will be heldbetween September 2 and 14 in Delhi, Union Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said.

Ahead of the COP-14, Mr. Javadekar launched a flagship project, part of a larger internationalinitiative called the Bonn Challenge, to enhance India’s capacity for forest landscape restoration(FLR).

Building capacity

It will be implemented during a pilot phase of three-and-a-half years in Haryana, MadhyaPradesh, Maharashtra, Nagaland and Karnataka. The project will aim to develop and adapt thebest practices and monitoring protocols for the country, and build capacity within the five pilotStates.

This will eventually be scaled up across the country, Saibal Dasgupta, a senior official in theForest Division of the Union Environment Ministry, told The Hindu.

India faces a severe problem of land degradation, or soil becoming unfit for cultivation. A 2016report by the Indian Space Research Organisation found that about 29% of India’s land (in 2011-13) was degraded, this being a 0.57% increase from 2003-05.

At the previous edition of the COP, India had committed to restore 13 million hectares ofdegraded and deforested land by the year 2020, and an additional 8 million hectares by 2030.

The Bonn Challenge is a global effort to bring 150 million hectares of the world’s deforested anddegraded land under restoration by 2020, and 350 million hectares by 2030.

The United Nations has three major Conventions: the United Nations Framework Convention onClimate Change (UNFCCC), the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the UnitedNations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD). Established in 1994, the UNCCD is theonly legally binding international agreement linking environment and development issues to theland agenda.




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Source : www.indianexpress.com Date : 2019-06-18

A NEW APPROACHRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related


© 2019 The Indian Express Ltd.All Rights Reserved

The writes is secretary, Ministry for Drinking Water and Sanitation. Views are personal.

Water is at the top of the development agenda of the new government, as emphasised by theprime minister at Niti Aayog’s governing council meeting last week. Encouraging theparticipating chief ministers to give top priority to the subject of water in all its different avatars,especially conservation, the prime minister emphasised that the first concrete step taken by thecentral government towards a holistic and integrated perspective on water has been theconstitution of the new Jal Shakti Mantralaya. This bold institutional step has integrated theerstwhile Ministry of Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation with theformer Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation, and has led to the formation of a single newministry focused on water with a capital W. This is a major step towards the consolidation of themanagement of water resources with delivery of drinking water and sanitation — a much-needed step in the direction of ensuring India’s water security — as well as a thrust towards thegoal of providing safe and adequate piped water supply for all households.

Until now, the institutional landscape for water in India has been somewhat fragmented, withabout seven ministries and more than 10 departments having a say on different aspects of watermanagement and use. Not only have these had some overlapping roles and responsibilities, butno single body had the ultimate oversight and authority necessary to resolve conflicting issuesand take the necessary decisions. This led to these ministries and departments working in silos.While the Niti Aayog had made a solid start at integrating the sub-sectors of water by creating anintegrated water management index and ranking states on this basis, the creation of the new JalShakti Mantralaya is a big bang governance reform which will have a permanent and positiveimpact on integration in the water sector.

Integrated water management in India has never been more relevant than it is today. India isentering water crisis territory, with certain estimates indicating that water demand will exceedsupply by a factor of two by 2030 if we continue with a business-as-usual approach. This has thepotential of driving economic losses of an estimated 6 per cent of GDP by 2050, and potentiallyleading to a significant percentage of our population having limited or no access to drinkingwater. Recent satellite data has also shown that India’s taps could run completely dry in themedium term, with cities like New Delhi, Bengaluru, Chennai and Hyderabad completely runningout of groundwater.

Some inefficiencies in the water sector have led to challenges with respect to importantoutcomes such as rainwater storage, and greywater treatment and reuse. Presently, Indiacaptures only eight per cent of its annual rainfall, among the lowest in the world. Lack of propermaintenance of existing infrastructure causes further losses of almost 40 per cent of piped waterin urban areas. Treatment and reuse of greywater is almost non-existent. As a benchmark,Israel, another country facing severe water shortages, treats 100 per cent of its used water, andrecycles 94 per cent of it, meeting more than half of its irrigation needs through this reusedwater.

In terms of drinking water, while 81 per cent of all habitations are currently estimated to have

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access to 40 litres of water per day through some source, only about 18 to 20 per cent of ruralhouseholds in India have connections for piped water supply. One of the priorities of the newgovernment is to provide piped water supply to all rural households by 2024 in a sustainablemanner. The Jal Shakti Mantralaya will also need to promote decentralised, but integrated,water resource management and service delivery, with a key focus on water conservation,source sustainability, storage and reuse wherever possible, by involving the communitiesthemselves, as they are the primary stakeholders. There are important lessons to be learnedfrom the best practices of decentralised planning for water conservation such as in HiwareBazaar, Maharashtra and the Swajal model of community-based drinking water in Uttarakhand— which need to be scaled up.

In water stressed areas, especially in the designated dark blocks and in areas affected by waterquality issues, surface water based multi-village schemes need to be designed, while ingroundwater rich areas, single village, groundwater-based schemes with end-to-end sourcesustainability measures should be encouraged. These schemes also need to have provisions forrainwater harvesting through household or community storage, which can also be used forrecharging groundwater. Other local methods of water storage and conservation must also beencouraged. A good example of local approaches to developing infrastructure for storage ofwater is seen in Dewas district in Madhya Pradesh. Here, through government support tofarming communities for building ponds as alternative storage and supply sources, the districthas achieved a 6 to 40 feet rise in the water table, even while increasing irrigated area by 120-190 per cent.

Another area of focus for water conservation in each drinking water scheme is developinginfrastructure for collection and basic treatment of domestic non-faecal waste-water, kitchen orbathing waste water — also called greywater — which typically accounts for nearly 80 per centof the by-product of all domestic water. This may be done through simple waste stabilisationponds, constructed wetlands and similar local infrastructure projects in order to recycle thiswater for agriculture, the sector that consumes 80 per cent of our water.

Some states, like Gujarat, are leading the efficient use of agricultural water by bringing in micro-irrigation to over six lakh farmers, 50 per cent of which are small and medium ones. The AndhraPradesh government is also prioritising water efficiency in agriculture, by earmarking Rs 11,000crore to bring 40 lakh acres of land under micro-irrigation over the next five years. If thesemeasures are combined with reuse of greywater for agriculture, it will result in a significantreduction of demand from our water resources.

Raising awareness and changing perceptions on water also needs to be an important priority.Even today, water is regarded as an infinite resource and is abundantly wasted in many parts ofthe country, while others suffer drought-like conditions. Behaviour change communicationinitiatives for both internal and external stakeholders will be critical in changing attitudes towardswater. All stakeholders, from state governments to citizens, must be taken on board and anational consensus will have to be built. To that effect, all integrated water managementapproaches would do well to borrow from the effective behaviour change communicationinitiatives of the Swachh Bharat Mission, and attempt to create an army of grass rootsmotivators on water, on the model of the swachhagrahis for sanitation. Initiatives to strengthenthe capacity of this field force, sarpanches, and block and district officials are already underway.

This approach of holistic and integrated water management that India is adopting is unique forany large federal country. Just like the country did in the Swachh Bharat Mission, India could layout a template for other countries on securing national water security by integrating fragmentedinstitutions and making water security everyone’s business.

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The writer is secretary, Department of Drinking Water and Sanitation, Ministry of JalShakti. Views are personal

Download the Indian Express apps for iPhone, iPad or Android

© 2019 The Indian Express Ltd. All Rights Reserved



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INDIA TO BE MOST POPULOUS BY 2027: UNRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Demography of the World - Growth of Population

India is set to overtake China as the most populous country by 2027 and will have almost 1.64billion inhabitants by 2050, says a United Nations report, adding that South Asia’s opportunity toreap the “demographic dividend” will peak by 2047.

Globally, people aged above 65 are the fastest growing age group, putting pressure on socialprotection systems as the proportion of the working-age population shrinks.

273 million more

According to the World Population Prospects 2019 report released on Tuesday, India isexpected to add 273 million people by 2050, which will be the largest national increase in theworld. China, on the other hand, is expected to become smaller, dropping from its current 1.43billion people to approximately 1.4 billion by 2050.

However, while India may have the highest absolute increase in numbers, its rate of growth isslowing. The Central and the Southern Asia region, of which India is a part, is expected to see a25% increase in population between now and 2050.

The rate of population growth is the highest in sub-Saharan Africa, where the fertility rate standat 4.6 births per woman over a lifetime. The region is expected to double its population by mid-century. Nigeria is expected to add 200 million people over the next three decades and overtakethe U.S. to become the third most populous nation.

Moving from geographical areas to age cohorts, India is still among the countries where theworking-age population (25-64 years) is growing faster than other groups, creating anopportunity for accelerated economic growth. However, the “demographic dividend” will peak by2047 in the region, meaning that countries such as India must rush to invest in education andhealth, especially for young people, the report says.

Globally, it’s the post-working-age group that is growing the fastest. By 2050, one in six peoplewill be above 65, compared with one in 11 people in 2019. In 2018, for the first time in history,people above 65 outnumbered children under five years of age. By 2050, the number of peopleover 80 is expected to triple to 426 million.

This trend has also led to falling proportions of working-age people to support an ageingpopulation. By 2050, almost 50 countries are expected to have less than two working-agepeople to support every person above 65.

Impact of ageing

“These low values underscore the potential impact of population ageing on the labour marketand economic performance as well as the fiscal pressures that many countries will face in thecoming decades as they seek to build and maintain public systems of health care, pensions andsocial protection for older persons,” says the report.



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WATER WOESRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related


In Delhi Water Supply & Sewage Disposal Undertaking v. State of Haryana (1996), the SupremeCourt said, “Water is a gift of nature. Human hand cannot be permitted to convert this bountyinto a curse, an oppression.”

But human beings have converted water into precisely that in Tamil Nadu, where there is nowan acute shortage of water. Many people are struggling to find adequate water in Chennai andother parts of the State. There are pictures going around of rows of women holding plasticbuckets and waiting for tankers. IT firms, restaurants and the construction industry have alladmitted that they are struggling without water. Clashes over water have been reported in someparts. It is a bad situation.

Yes, there was no rainfall last year, which is why major reservoirs that supply water to the cityare drying up. But could this situation not have been anticipated by the authorities? Could therenot have been timely desilting of lakes?

Our ancestors knew that there would be drought in the future. That is why they built ponds inand near every village, and tanks in every temple. They knew how to harvest water. There weretanks even in the Harappa-Mohenjodaro civilisation. Have we learnt more water harvestingtechniques or have we gone backwards in the past few millennia?

There was acute water shortage in Tamil Nadu when I was Chief Justice of the Madras HighCourt in 2004-2005. In L. Krishnan v. State of Tamil Nadu (2005), a Bench that I had presidedover noted that most of the lands marked in the revenue records of the State as ponds or lakeshad been encroached on. Illegal houses and shops had been constructed in those areas. TheBench directed removal of all these illegal encroachments. In M.K. Balakrishnan v. Union ofIndia (2009), I presided over a Bench of the Supreme Court. We noted the acute water shortagein several States, and set up a committee chaired by Thirumalachari Ramasami, a formerSecretary in the Union Ministry of Science and Technology, to work out scientific solutions to theproblem.

In China, some parts experienced frequent floods, while others experienced drought. The HuangHe was known as the ‘river of sorrow’. After the Chinese Revolution of 1949, the authoritiesconstructed huge dams. Canals were built to carry excess water to areas with drought. Flood aswell as drought problems were solved. Why could not this have been done in India?

I appeal to the Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu to immediately set up a committee comprisingscientists, administrators and other eminent people to consider the seriousness of the theproblem and find solutions.

Markandey Katju is a former judge of the Supreme Court


It opens the window for India to take advantage of economic opportunities in the geopoliticalspace


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A STABLE PLANET: ON WORLD POPULATIONPROSPECTS 2019 REPORT

Relevant for: Geography | Topic: Demography of the World - Population Trends

The key message from the UN’s World Population Prospects 2019 report is that national leadersmust redouble their efforts to raise education, health and living standards for people everywhere.India is projected to become the most populous country by 2027 surpassing China, and host1.64 billion people by 2050; the world as a whole could be home to 8.5 billion people in just overa decade from now, and the number could go up to 9.7 billion by mid-century. The projectionsshould be viewed in perspective, considering that alarmist Malthusian fears of inability to providefor more than a billion people on earth did not come true. Yet, there are strong arguments infavour of stabilising population numbers by raising the quality of life of people, and achievingsustainable development that will not destroy the environment. The UN report shows migrationto countries with a falling ratio of working-age people to those above 65 will be steady, as thoseeconomies open up to workers to sustain economic production. Japan has the lowest such ratio,followed by Europe and the Caribbean; in over three decades, North America, Eastern andSoutheastern Asia will join this group. India meanwhile will have a vast number of young peopleand insufficient natural resources left for exploitation. Preparing for the changes andopportunities migration offers will depend on a skills revolution.

At the national level, achieving a reduction in fertility rates in States such as Bihar, UttarPradesh, Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Jharkhand and Chhattisgarh — which are high as perSample Registration System data — is a challenge for India as it seeks to stabilise populationgrowth. This is possible if the State governments set their minds to it. They must singularly focuson improving education and health access for women, both of which will help them be gainfullyemployed. On the other hand, a rise in life expectancy has brought with it a policy imperativethat is bound to become even more important in coming decades. A growing population of olderadults is a certainty, and it opens up prospects for employment in many new services catering tothem. Urban facilities have to be reimagined, with an emphasis on access to good, affordablehousing and mobility. The Sustainable Development Goals framework provides a roadmap tothis new era. But progress in poverty reduction, greater equality, better nutrition, universaleducation and health care, needs state support and strong civil society institutions. Makingagriculture remunerative and keeping food prices stable are crucial to ensure nutrition for all.India is set to become the most populous nation. For its leaders, improving the quality of life forits people will be a test of political will.


As Prime Minister Modi returns to power, he must swear by the Indian civilisational ethos





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A CITY GONE DRY: ON CHENNAI WATER CRISISRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related


Chennai’s aspirations to grow into a global economic hub appear considerably weakened as itstruggles to find water. The shadow of drought from 2018 has stretched into the torrid summerthis year, evaporating not just the city’s reservoirs, but the prosperity of its residents who areforced to hunt for tankers, pay bribes and spend hours even at night waiting for trucks todispense some water. Ironically, Tamil Nadu’s capital, which in a normal year gets anythingbetween 1,300 mm and 1,400 mm of rainfall, has been laid low by the indifference of successivegovernments. That residents are now given minimum piped water and meagre tanker suppliestotalling a third of the installed capacity of 1,494 million litres a day, that too mainly fromdesalination plants, faraway lakes and farm wells, is proof of the neglect of water governance.Yet, even searching questions posed by the Madras High Court to the AIADMK governmenthave elicited only vague assurances on meeting basic requirements and restoring 210waterbodies to augment future storage, rather than a firm timeline. Chief Minister Edappadi K.Palaniswami was wrong to dismiss reports on water scarcity as “an exaggeration”, and he mustend this business-as-usual approach. A time-bound plan is needed to augment the resources inthe Greater Chennai region encompassing the neighbouring districts of Thiruvallur andKancheepuram. This plan should be tasked to a Special Officer, to be framed by officials inconsultation with credentialed experts in research and academia, and public comments invitedbefore it is finalised.

Given the large base of tanks and reservoirs in Greater Chennai — over 4,000 waterbodies ofsignificance — prudent rainfall management can help it through withering summers and weakmonsoons. A white paper with a full assessment of these wetlands and their storage potentialshould be a priority for the State’s Sustainable Water Security Mission. Deepening storage in thefour major reservoirs must get priority. Such a project must quantify the increase in storage andset an early deadline of a year. These measures can harvest the bulk of the rain in a good year,and prove superior to the fire-fighting approach of installing expensive desalination plants andbringing small quantities by rail from another district. Tamil Nadu made rainwater harvestingmandatory quite early, but failed to follow it up with an institutional mechanism to help citizensimplement it. The government should give monetary incentives to NGOs, as NITI Aayogproposed in its Water Index report, to encourage them to install systems and show quantifiablerecharge outcomes. On the consumer side, devices and practices to reduce wastage should bepromoted, especially on commercial premises. Droughts are bottlenecks for profit, and severalactors have developed a vested interest in transferring water to the city at high cost. Long-termsolutions can end this cycle.


In Bihar, authorities failed at several levels in preventing deaths due to encephalopathy





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WHAT IS ‘CONTINENTAL AXIS HYPOTHESIS’ INGEOGRAPHY?

Relevant for: Geography | Topic: Natural regions and the world climates

Also known as the ‘continental orientation hypothesis’, this refers to a hypothesis on why certainregions of the world throughout history experienced more economic development than others. Itstates that regions of the earth that are spread across a large latitudinal area, that is east-west,are more likely to witness greater development than regions that extend longitudinally, that isnorth-south. This is because temperatures are largely similar across latitudes, which helpstechnology and ideas to spread among a larger population. It was first proposed by Americangeographer Jared Diamond in his popular 1997 book Guns, Germs, and Steel.


For India and the U.S., managing bilateral ties is linked to balancing nationalist, cultural andeconomic agendas








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Source : www.pib.nic.in Date : 2019-06-26

JUDICIOUS USE OF WATER CAN SAVE INDIA FROMFUTURE CALAMITIES-SHEKHAWATRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related


Ministry of Jal Shakti

Judicious use of Water can save India from futurecalamities-Shekhawat

WAPCOS organizes-“Our River, Our Future” and “PlantTree, Save Life”

Posted On: 24 JUN 2019 2:45PM by PIB Delhi

Union Minister for Jal Shakti Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat today said that India is one of themost vulnerable country in terms of water availability and population explosion has added moreto the problem. Speaking at the Pre-Golden Jubilee Celebrations at ChhathGhat, ITO, NewDelhi, he said that every drop of water should be saved and conserved and all should make acombined effort for judicious use of water on a continuous mode.

Shri Shekhawat said that India had achieved the distinction of a food exporting country frombeing a food deficient nation, but scarcity of water in near future can worsen the situation andhence there is need for revival of traditional water bodies and more vigorous effort should bemade for water conservation.

Complimenting WAPCOS, Shri Shekhawat said that that the organization had not only takenpath breaking developmental activities, but also came forward in a big way to take upchallenging social issues. He said, from conceptualization to completion is the motto ofWAPCOS.

Minister of State for Jal Shakti Shri Rattan Lal Kataria said that like Swachh Bharat Missionlaunched on 2nd October 2014, which became a people’s movement, piped water scheme willalso achieve the same success as Prime Minister is fully committed to achieve this goal.

Speaking on the occasion, CMD, WAPCOS, Shri R.K.Gupta said that WAPOCOS is a leadingtechnology driven consultancy and EPC organization with strong global presence in the fields ofwater, Power and Infrastructure Sectors. WAPCOS has successfully completed/on-goingconsultancy assignments in countries covering Asia, Africa, Middle East, South America andPacific Island and is operating in more than 47 Countries, at present.

Later on, the Union Ministers and Secretary, Shri U.P.Singh were joined by hundreds ofvolunteers, NGO members, common men and employees of WAPCOS in cleaning four Ghats-ChhathGhat,ShyamGhat, QudeisaGhat and YamneshwarGhat at Yamuna bed and plantation oftrees to match the motto of WAPCOS- “Our River, Our Future” and “Plant Tree, save life”.

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(Release ID: 1575378) Visitor Counter : 646

Read this release in: Urdu , Hindi , Marathi , Punjabi



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CENTRE SET TO ROLL OUT ‘JAL SHAKTI’ SCHEMEFOR WATER-STARVED AREASRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related


The Centre is set to initiate the Jal Shakti Abhiyan to ramp up rainwater harvesting andconservation efforts in 255 water-stressed districts from July 1, in line with the government’spromise to focus on water.

Though water is a State issue, the campaign will be coordinated by 255 central IAS officers ofJoint or Additional Secretary-rank, drawn from ministries as varied as Space, Petroleum andDefence, according to a notification issued by the Department of Personnel and Training onWednesday.

The campaign seems to follow the model of last year’s Gram Swaraj Abhiyan, where centralofficials monitored the implementation of seven flagship development schemes in 117aspirational districts across the country.

The campaign will run from July 1 to September 15 in States receiving rainfall during the south-west monsoon, while States receiving rainfall in the retreating or north-east monsoon will becovered from October 1 to November 30. Overall, 313 blocks with critical groundwater levels willbe covered, along with 1,186 blocks with over-exploited groundwater and 94 blocks with lowgroundwater availability.

Progress monitored

The Jal Shakti Abhiyan would aim to accelerate water harvesting, conservation and borewellrecharge activities already being carried out under the Mahatma Gandhi National RuralEmployment Guarantee scheme and the Integrated Watershed Management Programme of theRural Development Ministry, along with existing water body restoration and afforestationschemes being undertaken by the Jal Shakti and Environment Ministries.

Progress would be monitored in real time through mobile applications and an online dashboardat indiawater.gov.in

A major communications campaign on TV, radio, print, local and social media will be carried out,with celebrities mobilised to generate awareness for the campaign.

Teams led by 255 Joint Secretary and Additional Secretary-rank officers and 550 DeputySecretary-level officers from various central ministries would fan out across the country, makingat least three trips of three days each to cover districts and blocks.

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GOVERNMENT GIVES TWO YEAR EXTENSION TOCONSTRUCTION WORK RELATED TO POLAVARAMMULTIPURPOSE PROJECT IN ANDHRA PRADESH:UNION ENVIRONMENT MINISTER

Relevant for: Geography | Topic: Indian Rivers, Lakes, and HEPs

Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change

Government gives two year extension to construction workrelated to Polavaram multipurpose project in AndhraPradesh: Union Environment Minister


In a major decision, the Union Environment Ministry has today given two years of extension andallowed the construction works related to Polavaram Multipurpose Project. Informing the mediain New Delhi the Union Minister for Environment, Forest and Climate Change Shri PrakashJavadekar said that today the order has been signed and ministry has allowed the constructionworks for two years.

The Union Minister stressed that Polavaram project is very important to the people of AndhraPradesh as it will irrigate nearly 3 lakh ha of land, generate hydel power with installed capacity of960 MW and provide drinking water facilities to 540 enroute villages covering 25 lakhpopulations, particularly in Visakhapatnam, East Godavari and West Godavari and KrishnaDistricts.

In the year 2011 the then government had asked the Government of Andhra Pradesh to stopconstruction work of the project but in the year 2014 the NDA government declared thePolavaram project a National project and the ministry kept the “Stop Work Order” in abeyance toallow the construction works. The “Stop Work Order” has been kept in abeyance six times for ayear each time. Considering the immense importance of the project this time the Ministry iskeeping the “Stop Work Order” in abeyance to allow the construction works for two years withoutpermission to impound water.

The Project envisages construction of Earth-cum-Rock fill dam across river Godavari. Themaximum height of the dam is 48 m.

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Read this release in: Marathi , Hindi

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INDIA NEEDS A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO FIGHTDROUGHT & FLOODS-SHEKHAWATRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related



India needs a holistic approach to fight drought & floods-Shekhawat


Union Minister for Jal Shakti Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat today said that challenges ofClimate challenge and unpredictability of Monsoon has emerged as one of the greatestproblems facing India. Speaking at a Workshop on Flood Management here, the Minister saidthat there is a need for holistic approach to fight the challenges of both the drought and floods inIndia. He said, as the Central Water Commission (CWC) is going to celebrate 75th year of itsfoundation soon, the distilled wisdom of the organization should be reviewed and taken forwardto find practical solutions.

Speaking on the occasion, Minister of State for Jal Shakti, Shri Rattan Lal Kataria said that inIndia states like Assam and North Bihar face floods every year, but with the arrival of newtechnology, CWC could be able to do flood forecasting 3 to 4 days in advance. He said, due tofaulty planning, many of our cities face the problem of water-logging during Monsoon andappealed that local bodies should work in coordination with Central agencies to tide over thischallenge.

The study for “Reassessment of Water Availability of River Basins in India using Space Inputs”for assessing the average annual water resources in the country is conducted by Central WaterCommission (CWC) with technical support of National Remote Sensing Centre (NRSC),Hyderabad. The average annual water resource of the 20 basins of the country has beenassessed as 1999.20 Billion Cubic Meter (BCM). Fully science based state-of-the-art modelingtools and satellite data have been used in this study. The methodology for reassessment wasfinalized by a committee consisting of experts from CWC, NRSC, Indian MeteorologicalDepartment (IMD) and Academia. The most distinguishing features of the study areincorporation of rainfall, land use, land cover, proper estimation of demand, evapotranspiration,soil moisture and development of basin and sub-basin wise models with the help of the softwarenamely ‘Water Resources Assessment Tool (WRAT)’ developed by NRSC. The outcome of thisstudy will be very useful for proper planning and development of country’s water resources.

Later, Shri Shekhawat released a book titled “Reassessment of Water Availability in India UsingSpace Inputs”.

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Read this release in: Urdu , Marathi , Hindi , Punjabi



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Source : www.thehindubusinessline.com Date : 2019-06-28

RISING POPULATION: DISASTROUS DIVIDENDRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Demography of the World - Growth of Population

More

In a dubious first, India is set to become the most populous nation in 2027, surpassing China,according to an estimation by the United Nation’s Department of Economic and Social Affairs.India’s population has been growing at a much faster rate than China’s, with the poorer regionscontributing the most to that growth. India’s population has ballooned from 555.2 million in 1970to 1,366.4 million now, a 146 per cent expansion. In comparison, China’s population grew atabout half that pace (73 per cent) from 827.6 million to 1,433.7 million, during the same period,largely on account of undemocratic decisions such as one-child policy. China saw its total fertilityrate (average number of children per woman) decline from 6.30 in 1965-70 to 5.41 in 1970-75after the two-child policy was introduced and fell further after the one-child policy wasimplemented. The country’s fertility rate is currently at 1.69. In contrast, in India, the total fertilityrate declined from 5.7 in 1965-70 to 4.85 in 1970-75, the initial years of the “hum do, hamare do”population control campaign. India’s fertility rate is currently at about 2.24, with wide variationsacross States — it stands at 1.6 in Tamil Nadu and West Bengal and at 3.3 in Bihar and 3.1 inUttar Pradesh. The fertility rate in the rural areas is much higher than in the urban areas. Thesilver lining here is that the median age of India’s population will be 28.43 years in 2020compared to 38.4 years in China.

India’s growing population poses more challenges than opportunities. To begin with, the countrywill need to invest in augmenting its education and healthcare system, grow more food, providemore housing, sharply increase its drinking water supply and add capacity to basicinfrastructure, such as roads, transport, electricity and sewage to provide a minimum quality oflife to every citizen. To fund all that expansion, the nation needs to raise resources throughtaxation and other means. Even if less than five million people are entering the workforce everyyear (and not 12 million as claimed by some), employing them at a decent wage is a tall order.Given this scenario, it makes sense to implement a ‘universal basic income’ as a social safetyvalve, for which tax compliance needs to improve. Managing forest and water resources forfuture generations must assume centrestage in policy-making, calling for a paradigm shift in thenotion of development.

The nation needs to find ways to contain growth of population without use of coercion. The poor,populous northern States must make concerted advances in women’s literacy, health andparticipation in the workforce, emulating the achievements of the southern States. This calls fora socio-cultural challenge to patriarchal mores.

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THINGS TO DO TO AVOID ANOTHER WATER CRISISRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related


Chennai has been reeling under its worst water crisis in decades with its four main reservoirs(Sholavaram, Chembarambakkam, Poondi and Red Hills) nearly empty. The city has not hadrain in nearly 200 days; only over the past few days has the city has seen light rainfall.Groundwater too has been over extracted. The Tamil Nadu Chief Minister has announced that10 MLD (million litres a day) of water will be transported to the city for the next six months fromJolarpettai, Vellore district. The Tamil Nadu government has also accepted Kerala’s offer toprovide water.

At the political level, rainwater harvesting (RWH) was initiated in 2000 at Sathyamurthy Bhavan.Subsequently the government under J. Jayalalithaa mandated RWH in Tamil Nadu, from 2003onwards. This meant that building approval for new apartments and dwellings were not to begranted by the Chennai City Corporation unless the building plan included a RWH component.The order also mandated that all existing buildings in Tamil Nadu install RWH structures.

Sixteen years later, we are back to square one. An audit by the non-governmental organisationRain Centre has shown that most government buildings in Chennai do not have a functioningRWH structure; these include several police stations and municipality buildings. Now, theGreater Corporation of Chennai has ordered the inspection of RWH structures, much after thecrisis.

Chennai’s Day Zero: It’s not just meteorology but mismanagement that’s made the city run dry

The issue with any crisis in India is the fire-fighting strategy that we adopt in response asopposed to systematised solutions. These stop-gap arrangements are soon forgotten whenthings temporarily go back to normal instead of making an attempt to deeply ingrain thesepractices in the system. This level of action, especially during the floods, is usually undertaken atthe level of the National Disaster Management Authority and the National Disaster ResponseForce. Local follow-up measures that are necessary to sustain results are ignored. During thefloods in Chennai in December 2015, the encroachment of wetlands was widely cited as a keyissue. Vanishing catchment areas had resulted in floods. Three-and-a-half years later, no formalmechanism has been put in place to check whether wetlands are being desilted and whether wecan avoid a similar flood-like situation again.

According to a recent NITI Aayog report, 21 Indian cities will run out of groundwater by 2020 ifusage continues at the current rate. Water governance in cities across India has been ad hoc.Learning their lessons from the Chennai crisis, other metropolitan cities should now set up urbanwater planning and management boards, a permanent body similar to urban developmentauthorities, that regulate the supply, demand and maintenance of water services and structures.

Chennai water crisis: Are desalination plants the answer?

On the supply side, this authority should monitor and regulate groundwater in Chennai. Watersupply by private tankers must also be regulated with pricing for their services having reachedexorbitant levels. This year, a tanker of approximately 12,000 litres cost 6,000 in several places,almost seven times the cost of water supplied by Chennai Metro Water. Last year, the sameamount of water cost 2,000. Additional desalination plants should also be commissioned as thiswater can result in water prices reaching to below 6 paise a litre. Experts are of the opinion that

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the beds of existing lakes can be deepened for greater water storage and better waterpercolation. Desalinated water is less expensive than water supplied by private tankers.However, since Chennai Metro Water charges a flat rate for use of this water, there is noincentive for judicious use.

Thus, on the demand side of things, Metro Water and groundwater use should be measured andpriced progressively, similar to the electricity tariff, where the quantity of use determines theprice. The board can practise differential pricing and cross-subsidise those households with alower per capita income use of water. For this to be implemented effectively, water meters are amust.

The urban water management board should also oversee the desilting of lakes in the city on aregular basis. The management of lakes comes under the Public Works Department, whichworks in isolation from Chennai Metro Water. This lack of coordination leads to a water policythat operates in silos. The board must also have regulatory powers to monitor the maintenanceof RWH structures at homes and in offices. In existing RWH structures, pipes are either brokenor clogged, filtration equipment is not cleaned, bore pits have too much silt and drains are poorlymaintained.

The body also needs to work in coordination with governments on granting approvals to newmass working spaces. Water scarcity has resulted in the IT corridor in Chennai suffering, withmost companies even asking employees to work from home. The myopic policies of thegovernment in providing incentives to the IT corridor without looking at their water-usenecessities and asking them to make provisions for this has cost them dearly. This is in contrastto the manufacturing sector around the Sriperumbudur-Oragadam belt, where a number ofcompanies and large manufacturing units have been able to maintain production due to efficientwater management practices. For example, in one unit, there is a rainwater harvesting pond andall buildings inside the complex are equipped with facilities for artificial ground water recharge.

The scarcity of essential resources not only leads to economic losses but also social unrest; anextreme case in Chennai resulted in a woman being attacked over water troubles. We must alsolearn from the experiences of other cities across the world such as Cape Town, South Africa,where water saving is being driven through the concepts such as Day Zero, thus promptingbetter and more efficient use of water. A sustainable governance solution to this problem alongwith public participation is essential to ensure that our future generations do not suffer as aresult of our failures.

‘Americai’ V. Narayanan is a Tamil Nadu Congress spokesperson. Kavya Narayanan is acommerce graduate pursuing entrepreneurship


The draft National Policy on Education has an important reform on the first stage of education





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CHENNAI WATER CRISIS: ARE DESALINATIONPLANTS THE ANSWER?Relevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related


Two desalination plants, set up in Minjur in north Chennai and Nemmeli on the East CoastRoad, in 2010 and 2013, respectively, have ensured that Chennai gets an assured drinkingwater supply of 200 million litres a day (more than one-third the total water supply).

This week, the State government inaugurated a third, 1,259 crore plant, with a 150 mld capacity,also in Nemmeli. By the end of the year, Chennai Metrowater will float tenders for a fourth plant.

This sounds like a solution. Environmentalists, however, point out that the plants not onlyconsume huge energy, they affect marine life and discharge harmful byproducts. With averageannual rainfall of 140 cm, experts argue that Chennai doesn’t need desalination plants, whichare more suited to arid areas with limited fresh water.

So what’s a sustainable alternative? Restore existing freshwater sources, say experts. The useof treated sewage is another option. Chennai Metrowater has made some headway here, with aproposal for tertiary plants from where treated sewage will be conveyed to lakes. Reducing over-dependence on fresh water and replenishing the ground water, finally, remain the best bets.











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CHENNAI WATER CRISIS: IT’S NOT JUSTMETEOROLOGY BUT MISMANAGEMENT THAT’S MADECHENNAI RUN DRYRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related


A man fills water from a hand pump at Marina beach in Chennai | Photo Credit: B. JothiRamalingam

Every morning for the past two months, N. Thangaraj has set out from his home at 4 a.m.,carrying plastic pots, ready to jostle through crowds, to collect a few litres of water to meet hisfamily’s basic needs. This family of four in Chennai’s Vyasarpadi neighbourhood gets busybefore dawn, waiting for the tanker to arrive. Water drives the daily routine of all 200 families inthe Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board (TNSCB) tenement.

Scores of pots of every colour line up the streets of Vyasarpadi, some marked with the owner’sinitials, as everyone waits with visible anxiety. Chennai, India’s sixth biggest city, has run almostentirely out of water. After a weak northeast monsoon, the city’s four main reservoirs — RedHills, Chembarambakkam, Cholavaram and Poondi that contribute 60% of the city’srequirements — have shrunk and dried up, and the cracked lake beds have become grazinggrounds. What little water the city has now comes from dwindling aquifers and tankers — someof which ferry water from agricultural wells or quarries several kilometres away from the city. TheCentral Water Commission has reported a 41% rainfall deficit in Tamil Nadu, up until when thiswent to press.

With this, Chennai becomes one of the first Indian cities to have run dry. TheChembarambakkam reservoir, for instance, has never dried up fully in the last 25 years,indicating the severity of the crisis.

Are desalination plants the answer?

As taps stop flowing, residents have turned to borewells, but these are drying up too. Theaverage groundwater level in Chennai has declined by a staggering nine metres this month,according to a study by Rain Centre, a city-based voluntary organisation. On an average, acontractor sinks 30 borewells a month, says V. Ravichandran of Chennai Borewell Rig Ownersand Contractors Association. Some borewells are sunk to depths of 600 feet in suburbs such asAvadi, Pallavaram and Irumbuliyur. Yet, some residents have to settle for saline water.

It was early this year when Chennai Metrowater tankers began to replace piped water in manylocations, a clear warning sign. At 10 a pot, residents say they spend as much as a fourth oftheir earnings on tanker water, but even that supply is erratic. Many people walk with their potsfor at least a couple of kilometres to reach a tanker, and many homes wait as long as one monthto get one lorry-load of water to fill up their overhead tanks.

“Initially, we often fought over water. Now, everyone seems to understand the situation and weform a queue,” says Thangaraj. He and his daughters carry back five or six pots of water homeevery day. “I buy a pot of water for 10 from private tankers. If the crowd is less, I fetch up to 10pots.”

K. Viji has rescheduled her day around the water supply hours. Viji lives in the TNSCB tenement

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in Perumbakkam, which gets piped water for one hour every two days. “I begin filling my pots at5 a.m.,” she says. “Then I try to finish some chores like bathing and washing clothes while thewater still runs in the taps.”

This year, not even Chennai’s tony neighbourhoods have been immune to the crisis — you cansee the same scramble in T. Nagar, Adyar and Triplicane. Nobody has been spared — the watercrisis has brought the rich and the poor, homes and industries to their knees. The hotel andconstruction industries have been hit particularly hard. Several restaurants are planning to stopoffering lunches to reduce water consumption, says M. Ravi, president, Chennai HotelsAssociation. Banana leaves have replaced plates in some restaurants, while others areproviding finger bowls because there’s no running water.

The city’s famous IT corridor, which has always been dependent on private tankers, is the worsthit. Each time private tankers threaten to go on strike, the residents here literally take to thestreets, either to ask for help or to protest. “We can’t use the saline water from our borewells.And a 12 kl private tanker load now costs 3,000. We are looking for more rainwater harvestingsolutions and we’re creating awareness on the judicious use of water,” says S. Sakthikumar,secretary of Olympia Opaline Flat Owners Association in Navalur.

To make matters worse, this year there has been no Krishna water from Andhra Pradesh either.This has been a blow to a city that’s just about recovering from a severe heat wave.

Over the years, Chennai has tried to fight back. Desalination plants in Nemmeli and Minjur, giantborewells in Neyveli aquifer and mines, agricultural wells in Tiruvallur district, and abandonedquarries on the city’s fringes — all of these now provide roughly 525 million litres a day to thecity. Nearly 900 tankers hired by Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board(Metrowater) are criss-crossing the city this year, making as many as 11,154 trips a day. This isthe highest in 15 years.

Smaller vehicles mounted with two- or three-kilolitre tanks have been added to this fleet.Metrowater is scouting everywhere for new water sources, and the latest plan is to transportwater to Chennai by train from Jolarpet, 220 km away.

These are, however, essentially short-term survival strategies. Such band-aid solutions arehardly sustainable, nor can they help the city become water-sufficient, says Bharath Jairaj, anenvironmental researcher with World Resources Institute-India. “Instead of looking at solutionswithin the city, we are focusing energy and money on figuring out how far we can go fromChennai to bring in water; why should Chennai become a parasite eating the resources of therest of the State?” he asks.

Jairaj says the problem is not just meteorological, but administrative: gross mismanagement ofwater resources and unplanned urbanisation has brought on this crisis. “We have always hadenough water — let’s not forget that just a few years ago, Chennai was in the throes of a floodand had to release excess water from the reservoirs.” But the city’s watershed areas have beenneglected. “Reservoirs should be regularly desilted, we need to create more storage areas bymaking use of existing ponds and tanks and creeks. We need to manage the water channelsthat bring water into these — instead, we have built over them, allowed construction over them.”

Indumathi M. Nambi, associate professor, Environment and Water Resources Division, IITMadras, also calls for better water governance. “We can’t depend on a few reservoirs to supplywater to a growing, water-starved metropolis. We need a decentralised system that stores and

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supplies water. Every lake must have a treatment plant,” she says. “Only then will the misuse ofwater bodies stop.”

Sekhar Raghavan, director, Rain Centre believes that rainwater harvesting (RWH) and greywater reuse in the apartment complexes that have mushroomed in the suburbs could go a longway. Though most buildings in the city have rainwater harvesting structures, after it was mademandatory in 2003, many of them are either not maintained or are badly designed. An auditdone a few years ago found that 52% of the multistoried buildings surveyed in the suburbs didnot have functional RWH structures.

The huge disparity in water consumption and access to water among various sections of peoplemust be addressed too. For example, as Jairaj says, we take it for granted that people living inslums can manage with four-five pots of water a day. “Tenements too must get water pipelines,”he says.

Grey water recycling, regulation zones where development is restricted, banning constructionsover water bodies — these can all be easily implemented if there’s political will. But that seemsto be clearly missing.

The crisis has now escalated into a political feud. Tamil Nadu’s opposition party DMK hasstaged protests against the AIADMK government, demanding a solution. It has charged thegovernment with neglect and inefficiency. The government, meanwhile, has chosen to ignore thesigns and instead says the crisis is being exaggerated.

As we go to print, the skies are cloudy. The little rain that looks likely will bring some respite fromthe heat, but will certainly not replenish the reservoirs.

In this bleak scenario, residents are showing the way. Harsha Koda, coordinator, Federation ofOMR Residents Association, says that his apartment was able to harness 10 lakh litres ofrainwater even during the drought last year. “During a good monsoon, we can collect 30 lakhlitres.”

It is unthinkable that a chronically water-starved city does not have systems already in place. “Allwe need is more R&D,” says Jairaj. “But today, we are about to hit Day Zero — the day ourreservoirs run dry.”









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RIVER CLEANING WILL BE TAKEN UP IN A MISSIONMODE-SHEKHAWATRelevant for: Geography | Topic: Distribution of key natural resources - Water Resources incl. Rivers & related



River Cleaning will be taken up in a Mission Mode-Shekhawat

“Cleanathon” at 8 Ghats in Yamuna today under NamamiGange

Posted On: 28 JUN 2019 10:02AM by PIB Delhi

Union Minister for Jal Shakti Shri Gajendra Singh Shekhawat today lamented that 22 kilometersof Yamuna stretch in Delhi contains more than 90 percent of pollution load and we are soundinghelpless to clean the same. Participating in a Cleanathon event of “Namami Gange” at theKalindi Kunj Ghat near Okhla Barrage this morning, the Minister said that when Prime Ministertook a broom in his hand, while launching the Swachh Bharat Mission on 2nd October, 2014, itbecame a mass movement and access to toilets became from 39 percent in 2014 to 99 percentin 2019. Similarly, under his leadership the cleaning of river Ganga and its tributaries would betaken up in a mission mode. Today, Cleanathon under Namami Gange was carried out at 8Ghats in Delhi.

Shri Shekhaewat said that Government could only be a catalyst, but to realise the dream andvision of Prime Minister- “Aviral Dhara”, “Nirmal Dhara” and “Swachh Kinara”, the Cleanathonproject should truly become a mass movement. He said that the Government is working on theproject by adopting the Basin Approach, which is more sustainable.

Speaking on the occasion, Minister of State for Jal Shakti Shri Rattan Lal Kataria said thatGovernment is well aware of its responsibilities towards cleaning of rivers and he is happy thatslowly this is also taking the shape of a mass movement like the Swachh Bharat Mission. Hesaid, apart from Ganga, Yamuna, Kali Bhagirathi, Alaknanda and Koshi will be brought underthe Cleanathon Project.

Secretary, Water Resources, River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation Shri U.P. Singh saidthat a river is river which must flow, but sadly this is not true for Yamuna. He also said thatcommunity engagement is must for taking Yamuna to its past pristine glory. He also lamentedthat people of Delhi had so far not felt Yamuna as one of their own heritages, and hence theplight of the river.

Earlier, a committee found in a report that "Although the Yamuna river flows only for 54kilometres from Palla to Badarpur through Delhi, the 22-km stretch from Wazirabad to Okhla,which is less than 2 per cent of the river length of 1370 kilometres from Yamunotri to Prayagraj,accounts for about 76 per cent of the pollution level in the river". This 2 per cent stretch fromWazirabad to Okhla sees maximum discharge of untreated industrial and domestic wastes.

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Read this release in: Urdu , Marathi , Hindi



geography - june 2019 · 2019. 6. 29. · disputes, the namami gange project, the flagship...

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