By Ayush Verma
A land with more than 1400 glaciers that provide a source of drinking water to many states and help in the agricultural economy has faced a serious threat to its water availability. Since the last 5 years, we have continuously witnessed the shortage of drinking water in both urban and rural societies. From the drying up of springs to deforestation, several other factors have led to acute water shortages. A recent report published by the National Rural Drinking Water Program (NRDWP) reveals a grave situation of drinking water shortage in Uttarakhand. Out of 39,202 villages, only 21,363 villages have drinking water facilities. The remaining 17,839 villages face severe water shortages either due to the dried-up water sources or the failed drinking water projects.
Another UNDP report also suggests that Uttarakhand is facing an acute water crisis wherein discharges of 500 water supply sources, including springs, streams, ponds, etc., have reportedly been reduced by more than 50%. There is an inadequate supply of water in urban areas, whereas in rural areas sources of drinking water are dying out at a very fast pace. The majority of the rural societies in Uttarakhand depend upon natural sources of water for drinking purposes. For example, they vastly depend on water from artesian sources, small springs, and others. Over the last 5 years, there has been an explicit decline in the dependency of rural communities on such natural sources for their drinking purposes. According to a report submitted by the commission related to migration, it underscored that water scarcity in remote villages is also the cause of permanent migration. According to them, either the water from a small stream is highly contaminated or many small springs are getting dried up. The common reason for the latter seems to be the diminished level of groundwater.
An influx of tourists and new residents to Uttarakhand, driven by heat waves and work-from-home options, is straining local resources, particularly water. An article published in Mongabay, India, states that nearly 12,000 natural springs reportedly have dried up in recent years, with 90% of Uttarakhand’s population depending on these vital water sources. Deforestation is the main cause of scarcity. The lack of water conservation units at houses worsens the situation. Due to deforestation, the maintenance of underground water aquifers becomes difficult. Government authorities, various NGOs, along with hundreds of volunteers and individuals are working on a groundwater recharge system that maintains a proper underground mountain water aquifer. They do this by digging trenches at selected places on hills so that, in the monsoon, water can be stored and help in further recharge. Chandan Nayal, an environmentalist and resident of Nainital district, with the help of a rural community, has created more than six thousand such trenches in nearby areas and, consequently, the increased level of water in rivulets and small springs can be seen clearly.
If we consider this severe crisis in respect of urban areas, then things are relatively similar. A recent wetland case of Niranjanpur of Dehradun is one of the examples of delayed conservation and improper management of urban water bodies. There should be buffer areas around the wetlands for the proper management of the ecological character of these places. According to the Centre for Science and Environment, nearly 70 percent of Uttarakhand’s wetlands have been destroyed over the years due to delayed conservation action. A majority of them (816 of 994) are small wetlands of less than 2.25-hectare area.
There is an utter need to conserve the water sources. In the beginning, we should focus on small springs, artesian sources, and rivulets, which contribute to major drinking water sources in rural areas. Plastic has been the most hazardous thing for water ecosystems for ages. The issue of microplastics needs to be addressed with greater concern. Shockingly, we are unable to conserve the streams at their origin; the Heval River, which originates near Surkanda Devi Temple, demands a huge concern at its source itself. Due to a lack of a proper waste management system for the Himalayas, plastic is deteriorating almost all the natural resources. We need to understand that practices that we were doing 20–30 years ago are significant to some extent only. Now is the time to adapt to a new lifestyle according to the current scenarios. This can be only possible with a better understanding of our ecological character. Despite a plethora of water conservation schemes, there exists a wide gap between the government and rural communities. Despite the ban on single-use plastic carry bags, one can witness huge bundles of that roaming in the market.
The issue is not limited to water conservation; rather, issues like gender sensitisation, women’s empowerment, and many other things are interrelated. The rural community leaders have a pivotal role in this regard. They should organise periodic gatherings in their respective areas so that there should not be a lack of awareness. We must provide alternatives to plastic bottles to the pilgrims, as it will help in curbing the plastic pollution occurring at higher altitudes.
(Ayush Verma is a Young Environmentalist)
