WATER RESOURCES

* Water as a natural resource :

- About three-fourth of the earth's surface is covered with covered

with water. Only a small proportion (2.5 per cent) of it accounsfor
fresh water that can be put to use.
- This water becomes a renewable resource by hydrological cycle.

* Two methods of conserving water:

(i) 'Rooftop Rain Water Harvesting' is practised to store drinking
water particularly in Rajasthan.
(ii) In the floodplains of Bengal, people developed inundation
channels to irrigate their fields

* Water Scarcity: is the lack of sufficient available water

resources to meet the demand for water usage within a region.

* Reasons for water scarcity :

(1) Increase in population:

- This causes greater demand of water and unequal access of
people to water resources
- Greater demand means demand for food and rise in foodgrain
production which needs more water

(2) Intensive industrialisation:

- In industry for various purposes, water is heavily used
- To run industries, power is required and 22% of it comes from
hydro-electricity

(3) Urbanization:
- Large and dense population adds to water demand and scarcity
- Most pump groundwater to meet their needs and water tables
are falling consistently
(4) Bad quality of water too leads to scarcity of water:
- There may be sufficient water in an area but it may be polluted by
domestic and industrial wastes, chemicals, pesticides and
fertilizers used in agriculture, thus making it unsafe for human use
- India's rivers have turned into toxic streams

(5) Unequal access:

- The people of wet areas are not sensible enough to store the
excess for those in the dry areas
- Moreover the rich and affordable class do not bother to get water
whatever situation maybe due to their money power.

* Ways to control water scarcity :

(i) Judicious use of water
(ii) Rain water harvesting
(iii) Digging new ponds and tanks
(iv) cleaning of existing ponds and tanks
(v) keep the flow of river undisturbed

* Multipurpose River Projects And Integrated Water Resources

Management

(1) HYDRAULIC STRUCTURE in ancient India

-- Three Hydraulic structures of ancient India are as under :
(i) In the first century B.C. Sringaverapura near Allahabad had
sophisticated water harvesting system channelling the flood
water of the river Ganga
(2) During the time of Chandragupta Maurya, dams, Lakes and
irrigation systems were extensively built
(3) In the 11th century, Bhopal lake, one of the largest artificial
lake of its time was built

* DAM: is a barrier across flowing water that obstructs, direct or

retards the flow, often creating a reservoir, lake or impoundment.

- Based on the structure and the materials used , Dams are

classified as Timber dams, Embankment dams or Masonry dams
- According to height, dams can be categorised as Large dams
and Major dams or alternatively as Low dams, Medium and High
dams

* Multi- purpose river project :

- Multi-purpose River valley projects generally refer to large dams

that serve several purposes in addition to impounding the water
of a river

* Some of the multipurpose projects are :

-- Bhakra- Nangal project in Satluj- Beas river basin.
-- Hirakud Project in the Mahanadi basin.

* Objectives :
(i) These projects aim at providing irrigation water and power
inputs which then enhances the food productivity.
(ii) Such projects involve construction of several large, medium
and small dams on rivers with purpose of generation of p
electricity.
(iii) They are used to regulate river flow and ensure adequate suply
of water during dry periods.
(iv) Water supply for industrial and domestic purposes.
(v) These projects transmit benefits to distant places.

* Narmada Bachao Andolan :

- Is a Non-governmental organisation (NGO) that mobilised tribal
people , farmers, environmentalists and human rights activists
against the Sardar Sarovar Dam being built across the Narmada
river in Gujarat.
-- It is originally focused on the environmental issues related to
trees that would be submerged under the water.

* Advantages and Disadvantages of Multi-purpose river projects:

* Advantages :
(i) Multi-purpose projects launched after independence with their
integrated water resources management approach , were
thought of as the vehicle that would lead the nation to the path
of development and progress .
• Jawaharlal Nehru proclaimed the dams as the temples of
modern India : the reason being that it would integrate
development of agriculture and the village economy with rapid
industrialisation and the growth pf the Urban economy.
(iii) Dams were built to impound rivers and rainwater that could be
used later to irrigate agricultural fields.
(iv) Hydro-electricity is also generated which is provided to
industries to run machines.
(v) Dams control floods at the time of excessive rainfall.
(vi) It protects the devastation of life and property and soil does
not get eroded.

* Disadvantages :
(i) 'Rivers' natural flow is affected
(ii) Due to sedimentation at bottom, rivers' aquatic life forms are
affected.
(iii) vegetations of catchments area are submerged.
(iv) People are displaced and People's livelihood is affected.

* Irrigation changed the cropping Pattern in many regions of India:

(i) Farmers shift to water intensive and commercial crops.
(ii) This leads to salinisation of the soil.
(iii) This has transformed the social landscape and increasing gap
between richer land owners and landless poor.

* Rainwater Harvesting:
-- It is a technique by which recharge of water can be increased. It
is done by artificial recharging of abandoned wells.

-- Different methods of rainwater harvesting are :

(i) In hills and mountains regions, people built diversion channels

like the 'Guls' or 'kuls' in the western Himalayas for agriculture.
(ii) Rooftop rainwater harvesting is commonly practiced to store
drinking water in Rajasthan.
(iii) In arid and semi- arid regions, agriculture fields were
converted into rainfed storage structures that allow the water
to stand and moisten the soil.
(iv) In the flood plains of Bengal, people develop inundation
channels to irrigate their fields .

* Rainwater harvesting in semi-arid regions of Rajasthan:

(i) In the semi-arid and arid regions of Rajasthanmalmost all the

house traditionally had underground tank or tankas for storing
drinking water.
(ii) The tankas could be large as a big room
(iii) The tankas were part of the well-developed Rooftop rainwater
harvesting system and were built inside the main house or the
courtyard.
(iv) They are connected to the sloping roofs through a pipe and
store rainwater in these underground 'Tankas'
(v) Many houses construct underground rooms adjoining the
'Tanka' to beat the summer heat as it would keep the room cool.

------------------------------------------------×××××××--------------------------------------------------
------------------------------------------------×××××××--------------------------------------------------