Water – a source to life


Bilal Hussain 

Water being the source of life is as precious as life itself. Every citizen has a right to safe and clean water, which no one can curtail.  However, the figures on water are disappointing: 1.6 billion people do not have access to drinking water in the 21st century. 2.5 billion people do not have sanitation facilities. Five million people in the world, mostly women and children, perish each year with water borne disease.  If this population is to be provided with the adequate drinking water huge investment in the construction of new water projects is the only way out. 

Certain independent theories suggest that to halve the burgeoning 1.6 billion people presently without water, we need to double the amount currently spent on water in the coming ten years.   In other words the world would have to invest at least 33 billion dollars in ensure access to drinking water to whole human population. Pertinent to mention here that currently the world spends 16 billion dollars on water.  

Among many other reasons, gargantuan increase in population, extensive industrial development and the rapid use of water in farming are the main that create water scarcity. In the past forty years, the area of irrigated land has doubled. By 2025 two-third world population would be facing acute water stress. 

The global demand for water in 2025 would grow 40% more than what is at present.   Although the recommended basic water requirement per person per day is 50 litres, experts say that 30 litres could be sufficient for use giving the proportion: 5 litres for drinking and cooking and 25 to maintain hygiene. In sharp contrast to it, average US citizen uses 500 litres per day. Similarly, average Briton use 200 litres. Pertinently people of Gambia in African continent use as less as 4.5 litres per person per day.  

Coming home the situation is abysmally dismal. Srinagar, for example, is also bracing for acute water scarcity in the foreseeable future. With rapid expansion in city area and resultant enormous growth in the population the demand for drinking water has increased whooping 300 per cent in the last three decades. 

Even as in 1973 demand for water in Srinagar was 14.05 million gallon per day (MGD), the figure has increased up to 57 MGD at present and experts project the demand at 112 MGD in 2032. The need of the hour is to go for construction of new water schemes to meet the demand of 55 MGD in the coming 28 years.  

Another problem we have is that urban populace and industrial sectors do not even pay for the water they use. The height is that huge quantity of water is misused by way of gardening and construction work. Even people are using the drinking water for hose downing their vehicles. Corruption in government sector is another rather one of the biggest problems that has exacerbated the problem. Amid this precarious situation privatizing the public utilities is something that the government would have to give a serious thought.  The private sector like in many other places can do wonders. Once the utility is given to the private operators, we can hope for a better tomorrow.

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