New Delhi, June 17: Amid alarming reports of water shortage and related problems from different parts of the country, renowned activist “waterman” Rajendra Singh has feared forced migration from the country in the next seven years, if effective steps are not taken on urgent basis for optimally saving available water and replenishing ground water by way of check on wasteful draining of rain water.
Almost 90 cities and towns in the country have been facing situation of ‘Day Zero’ with taps running dry for days, as around 2.5 villages or settlements are in the want of safe drinking water and more than 72 per cent of the areas in the country are overdrawing ground water and heading for early crisis of ‘Day-Zero,’ when there would be no water available, the Magsaysay award-winning crusader told UNI.
Government authorities at the level of the Centre, states and the rural and
urban local self government bodies, have demonstrated total apathy to their role in protecting resources and replenishing water table, Mr Singh, whose NGO Tarun Bharat Sangh had been successfully revived several streams and water bodies at different places, said.
The apathy is evident from the fact that an allocation of Rs 1,600 crore was
made for aquifers mapping in the country three years ago, however, the concerned agencies and authorities failed to do so or even utilise fully the fund allocated.
Presently, people are migrating from problem prone rural areas to urban
towns aggravating the situation there but within 7 years the situation might
worsen and we might witness forced migration from the country as being
witnessed in several countries like Syria, Sudan, Palestine, the Waterman
said, sharing experience during his visits to over 35 crisis prone countries in
Africa, Europe and Central Asia.
Syria has virtually faced water war as Sudan is confronted with waterborne
diseases, he pointed out.
Referring to water woes in the national capital of New Delhi, Mr Singh said
that contamination of ground water due to high concentration of fluorides, nitrates and even poisonous arsenic are also caused by over exploitation of ground water as it triggers more mixing of minerals from the rocks.
“So the top most priority for the government is to ensure conservation of the
aquifers and urgent and effective measure to replenish and recharge ground
water by way of total rain water harvesting”, Mr Singh said.
“We are required to totally prevent wasteful draining of rain water, tap every
drop of it and fully return to the earth through water harvesting structures”, he elaborated.
“If earnest and concerted steps are taken, the situation can improve within next 4-5 years. There are instances, when some countries averted crisis by way of their sincere efforts.
‘For instance, parched Cape Town in South Africa had succeeded in its efforts, when the authorities and people there managed to push back the Day Zero–when taps could run dry–to 2019,’ Mr Singh maintained.
