Saving water

India needs a balanced management template

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India could be staring at a severe water crisis this summer with snowfall on the Himalayan-Hindu Kush range reaching a 23-year low for a third consecutive year, according to the International Centre for Integrated Mountain Development's latest "Snow Update" report. "Snow persistence", or the time the snow remains on the ground, is almost 24 per cent below normal.

This means that water levels in the subcontinent's major river systems—the Ganga, Brahmaputra, and Indus—will be running low since snowmelt in April, May, and June typically accounts for a significant part of the annual river flows.

Such low levels will, in turn, impact irrigation and power generation, and Indians' access to water. In these circumstances, increasing dependence on groundwater resources is a given. But groundwater resources too are rapidly depleting, with the NITI Aayog estimating that nearly 600 million Indians currently face high to extreme water stress.