Arbitrary exploitation of groundwater must be stopped

A factory in Gujarat that used large amounts of water was facing a problem – the summer season was approaching. The amount of supply that was to be made was not being made. Despite efforts to reduce water consumption, there was a major water shortage, which could have led to the factory’s closure. In such a situation, the manager was forced to buy a water tanker at the rate of about Rs 1500 per 5000 litres. He was also ready to pay higher price. He needed hundreds of tankers every day. This was good news for the neighboring farmers, most of whom had wells and pumping sets to provide water to their crops. But selling water to the factory was more profitable. In such a situation, the factory could also make profit by continuing its production and the farmers could earn more by selling water. But this is not a beneficial situation from social point of view.

The first thing is that even if someone is ready to pay a higher price, groundwater cannot be exploited arbitrarily. The private benefits are minor compared to the social losses of groundwater depletion. Secondly, diverting water from crops to factories may make personal sense, but socially it cannot be continued for long. In such a situation, farmers having wells does not mean that they have unlimited right to endlessly exploit groundwater. Anyway, there is very little cost in extracting water with the cheap electricity available through grants. This story is being repeated in a thousand ways. If customers from rich countries start paying higher prices for Basmati, can we export rice indiscriminately? Generally, all barriers to export of crops should be removed if it helps in increasing the income of farmers. But then this would mean export of water, of which there is a huge shortage in India. Last year, India had earned foreign exchange worth about Rs 90 thousand crore by exporting 2.20 crore tonnes of rice. But this also means that at least 88 lakh crore liters of water was exported. Due to severe shortage of water in our country, the price of that water is much higher than the foreign currency earned.

The same thing applies with sugar exports. The logic of selling water-intensive crops at higher prices is the same as the logic of industries purchasing water from private wells that are actually for farming. We do not have to think about water scarcity only on the occasion of World Water Day celebrated on 22 March. India has only two percent of the world’s fresh water, but has 17 percent of the global population. In Bengaluru, people leaving work and standing in long queues for a bucket of water is a serious warning. A few years ago, several consignments of large quantities of water had to be sent by trains to Latur in Maharashtra. Many times thermal power plants have had to be shut down because adequate water was not available to keep the machines cool. Such incidents are estimated to result in a loss of 8.2 terawatt hours of electricity between 2017 and 2021, which is equivalent to supplying electricity to 1.5 million homes. The World Resources Institute says that poor water management in countries like India and China could lead to a loss of seven to 12 percent of gross domestic product (GDP).

When the per capita availability of usable water in a country is less than 1700 cubic meters, it is called a water stressed country. In India this figure is much below 1000, whereas in America the availability is 8000 cubic meters per capita. The per capita availability of water in India in 1951 was more than 3000 cubic meters. It is clear that this water pressure is due to increase in population. Along with this, the quality of existing sources of water supply has also declined. This has happened due to lack of proper water purification and things like arsenic poisoning. The Union Jal Shakti Minister had told the Parliament that arsenic has been found in ground water in 230 districts and fluoride in 469 districts in the country. The problem of water scarcity becomes more serious due to pollution in groundwater. Then arbitrary exploitation of groundwater has made the situation critical. Strangely, this is facilitated by the supply of cheap or free electricity, the production of which is hampered by water scarcity. Dealing with the problem of water scarcity should be our biggest national priority and for this, efforts should be made from every level of government to society and family. The solution requires attention to the following aspects.

First of all, there should be water conservation, which also includes rain water harvesting. Then emphasis should be laid on proper use and over-consumption of crops should be avoided or at least the method should be changed. Thirdly, re-use and recycling should be promoted. Apart from drinking, cooking and bathing, recycled water can be used for almost 90 percent of the uses. Such plants have been started in Pune from which people can order a tanker of recycled water for free through an app. Fourthly, there is a need for a solid policy and regulation. The fifth aspect is the use of technology for good water management and rejuvenating the reservoirs. Such efforts have been made in states like Tamil Nadu. Raising public awareness not only regarding water, but also in matters like less use of plastic or not bursting crackers can be very effective. Making children aware can be useful in the long run. In a recent advertisement, children were shown drawing water while singing a song, but water was not available there. This is a good example of effective publicity to warn against water crisis. On the occasion of World Water Day, we should reiterate our resolve to save our most precious resource.
(These are the personal views of the author.)