The Issues of Managing Water Resources in India

India has to take urgent steps to manage its water resources in scientific and efficient way otherwise there will be very adverse effects on all sectors which include agriculture, industries, health sectors etc. More than half of the Indian population is employed in agricultural sectors and if the current trends pf water use is continuing, by 2030 India may end up using it 60% of its aquifer potential. This means that agriculture production will fall by nearly 25% creating unemployment for large section of Indian people.

Disputes over water sharing between different Indian sates are also a common phenomenon which is only arising due to poor management of water resources. Unless this matter is resolved quickly, more intensified rivalry can be seen in coming decades. With the current situation India needs to harness its each and every drop to meet the demands of its citizen be it for domestic, agriculture, industrial or recreational purposes. For this it is need of time to build infrastructure for water storage with high potential, at the higher altitude in the upper catchments of the rivers as the water it that is clean and pure.

Since agriculture sector uses 90% of the total fresh water India withdraws, it would be beneficial if more drought resistance and high yielding crops are developed which take away comparatively less water per unit of grain production. Along with this innovation is also needed to develop crops which can tolerate moderate to low salinity. There should be more efficient and strong water pollution prevention laws. Strong action should be taken on those who violets the law and pollute water bodies through disposing of industrial and domestic effluents. There are number of cases in which we have seen the contamination of groundwater by trace elements and heavy metals.

Though these are mostly geogenic in nature, anthropogenic activities are also helping in intensifying the contamination. Indian government at the central level have constituted an Inter-ministerial group to study and tackle these situations. It is a requirement of India that quick action should be taken as two-thirds of Indian population is dependent on groundwater and these contaminations are proving fatal to the inhabitants of those areas. It is fact that India is not a water scarce country, the average annual rainfall in India is around 1200 mm along with a number of major and minor rivers spread across Indian boundary.

Lack of sensitization among the citizens both in terms of water conservation and water pollution has devoid a large section of people from getting its primary resource for the sustenance of life. India government along with people and various non-governmental organization must be ready to tackle this situation which is about to knock the doors in near future. Infrastructure, stronger laws, innovation and awareness among the masses must be generated to ensure safe and pure drinking water for each and every Indian citizen.