Important Points Of Water Resources In India
Ø The supply-demand gap
for water is projected to rise to about 50% by 2030, with demands doubling from
current levels of 700 billions cubic meters to around 1498 billion cubic meters,
and supply barely reaching 744 billion cubic meters.
Ø Even after years of
work on Ganga and Yamuna Action Plans, and crores of rupees spent, we have not
managed to clean up these rivers.
Ø The average annual
rainfall in the country has been estimated about 1170 millimeters (mm). This, along
with the, total snowfall and glacier melt in terms of Volume works out to about
4000 bil1ion cubic meters (bcm). However due to losses through evaporation and
evapo-transpiration, thewater availability in the country has been assessed to
be about 1869 bcm.
Ø Even this available
water cannot be fully utilized due to topographical constrainta and
hydrological features and utilizable water has been estimated to be about 1123
bcm comprising of 690 bcm of surface water and 433 bcm of replenishable ground
water.
Irrigation:-
Ø Only about 62 million
hectare (mha) or about 44% of the cropped area in the country is reported as
irrgated today.
Drinking water supply:
Ø The access to safe
drinking water sources in urban areas of India was about 90% in the year 1990 and
93 % in the year 2000 and this has improved ed to about % by the year 200 ' n
rural India
access to safe drinking water sources has increased from
about 58% in 1990 to about 73% in theyear 2008.
Hydropower:-
Ø India is endowed with
estimated hydropower potential of more. Than 1500 mega watts. However, only
about 21 % of the potential been developed so far and a further 10% being
developed.
Flood Management:-
Ø The total flood prone
area in the country has been estimated to be about 46 million hectares.
Ø A network of 175 flood
forecast station is also maintained which provide reasonably accurate forecast
to help in warning and advance actions to reduce the damages from incoming
flood.
Challenges in Water Sector:-
Ø The per capita
availability of water in 1951 was assessed to be 5177 cubic meter. Due to
increase in population, urbanization and industrialization this has come down
to about 1650 cubic meter.
The five goals identified for the National Water Mission
are:-
Ø Comprehensive data
base in public domain and assessment of impact of climate change on water resources.
Ø Promotion of citizen
and state action for water conservation and augmentation.
Ø Focused attention to
vulnerable areas including over-exploited areas.
Ø Increasing water use
efficiency by 20%;
Ø Promotion of basin
level integrated water resources management.
Ø The Ministry of Water
Resources has taken up the development of a web-enabled Water Resources
Information System in cooperation with the National Remote Sensing Centre of Department
of Space.
Improved Management:-
Ø 13 th Finance
Commossion has provided special water sector management grant of RS 5000 crore for
four years i.e., from 2011-12 to 2014-15, which is subject to setting up of a
Regulatory Autority and avhieved the normatively assessed state-specific
recovery of water chages.
Improving the efficiency of the Water facilites:-
Ø The National
Commission for Integrated Water Resources Development has assessed that irrigation
efficiencies from surface water in India can be improved from the present level
of 35 to 40% to about 65% to about 75%. With the improvement in efficiency –
both through efficient end water use as well as by improving the efficiency of
facilities created for irrigation.