November - Primary Science

Science Department - Madhubala Iyer 

CONSERVE OUR PLANET’S MOST PRECIOUS RESOURCE, WATER

Water is considered to be one among five basic elements required for our life. Earth being a blue planet is facing fresh water crisis! Ancient days, people dwelled into the areas where water was abundantly reachable. The importance of valuable natural resources, (water) is being realized for the rapid pace of development but unfortunately people have no value of the lethal consequences due to its unplanned way of handling. Here are some thoughts for every individual to hold the responsibility in this aspect of conserving water which is as precious as our life.

Considering the present global scenario, drinking water accessibility is reducing considerably due to human activities on exploiting water for their luxurious life style.

The annual average rainfall in India is 1170 millimeters, which is about 6 times more than the western US, but in spite of this, about 100 million people in urban areas do not have access to clean drinking water, but they float in flood water when it rains heavily, Is it not ridiculous?

If we are not able to manage water resources properly, we will be craving for every drop of water in near future.

Honorable Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the Chairman of National Institution for Transforming India (NITI AAYOG) plays a vital role in the country’s development process.

According to a recent report, Chennai ranks first in water-stressed cities around the world. Among the top 20 cities in the world facing a water crisis, Chennai, Kolkata, Mumbai, and Delhi are included in this list.

NITI Aayog also believes that there is a possibility of water depletion in many tier two cities by 2030. The crisis has taken its formidable form in cities like Hyderabad and Bangalore too. It is predicted that drinking water will be on the verge of out of reach in those cities.

It is a high time for spreading awareness on the following facts:

In India, 85% of the total water consumption is used in agriculture, 10% in industries, and 5% in households.

In the last 10 years, the level of groundwater has reduced by 54%. The depletion of ground water level is aggravated with the pressure of urbanization and Industrialization in many cities of India. According to the World Bank report, many farmers have committed suicide in India due to drought during the last few years.

Almost half the number of natural wells has dried up due to global warming and hence the problem of drought is seriously expected. As the rain water is not harvested, people are under severe water crisis. 

Although there are many rivers in the country, due to pollution, the quality of available water is very poor. In rural areas of India, 70 percent of people drink polluted water.

It is calculated that need of water in our country is double of its supply or availability. In 1994 the presence of water was 6000 cubic meters per person, in 2000 it was reduced to 2300 cubic meters and by 2030 the availability of water is expected to be only 1600 cubic meters per person.

There is a great threat to save our life from the grim reality.

The following suggestions can be taken and with the due cooperation, we can conserve water for our future generation.

l  All should follow water conservation policy in the country.

l  Water resources to be equally shared across the country to avoid its over usage and wastage.

l  Fresh water should not be released in dirty drains but to be planned for reusing it.

l  Rain water harvesting should become compulsory as 5% of the total rainfall in the country will yield the year-long needs of more than 100 crore people.

l  Population explosion has to be under control as we can minimize the utility of water.

l  Building dams across the rivers should not be trapped by thermal canal plants, nuclear power plants, and industrial units for their maximum use.

 

l  Submersible pumps, borewells and tube wells are to be minimised as to increase the ground water level. It is also possible by adopting artificial recharge techniques in hilly areas and by saving waste water through sloping rivers and drains in rural areas through artificial recharge.

The Government of India has constituted the

“Ministry of Jal Shakti”  to work extensively with the state on water harvesting and water conservation across the country  Water Crises can also be avoided by using water monitoring, efficient water management, and advanced techniques.

Let us all lend our cooperation to this mission!!!!!!!!!!!

By MADHUBALA IYER

Science Department