With the alarming decrease in the availability of healthy consumable water and the burgeoning population, which is practically exploding at the seams, the threat of a growing rift between the have-nots and the have-nots will widen, and the possibility of a conformation between them increases everyday.
This situation is even grimmer in India, still predominantly a Third World country where the struggle to survive and eek out a living revolves around the sustenance of water resources, and in this regard, the scenario certainly looks bleak.
In India, the issue of water resources and the importance of its conservation and protection are highlighted aptly by the gross ineptitude of the officials and the disinterest of the officials who are put in charge of water supply and conservation, because of whom, thousands upon thousand of liters of drinking water is just going down the drains.
Even a couple of days back, there was talk of scarcity of water in the small society that in reside in Airoli, Navi Mumbai, which made my whole world go topsy-turvy, after having been promised 24-hour water supply. If this is the case in Mumbai which is comparatively better-off when it comes to sources of drinking water, we could only imagine what the situation would be in the other monsoon and water deprived parts of the nation would be like.
Water Sources of Mumbai:
Mumbai has an abundance of lakes in its vicinity. The Western Ghats trap most of the moisture laden monsoon clouds which feed these lakes. However with the growing population, the current supply levels are still inadequate. Here are the lakes supplying the city its precious liquid.
Lakes near Mumbai
Lake Overflow level in meters
Modak Sagar 163.15
Tansa Lake 128.63
Vihar Lake 80.42
Tulsi Lake 139.17
Upper Vaitarana 603.51
Bhatsa 133.00
But this relative prosperity which is still a long way off from serving the needs of the people and short of what they deserve, has made its so called guardian and custodians its worst enemy by taking it this valuable resource for granted. These officials, and in some extend, the citizens who are apathetic towards this issue, seem to be hell-bent on exploiting this resource to our doom.
Thousand of gallons of water is been wasted in Mumbai and its satellite city of Navi Mumbai everyday. The transportation infrastructure which ferry the water from the lakes to homes are so unscrupulously planned and maintained that they burst and crack at regular intervals.
If the pipes carrying water somehow withstand the gush of water, then some anti-socials elements break open the pipes to exploit the water without much effort due to the lack of regulation and the absence of any penalty for their actions. That is the sad part about all this. When people are dying for the lack of water one part of the city, here we are wasting one of the most precious elements that we have. This disparity between these regions could eventually force many to come to the streets and go violent.
Apart the loss of water, the threat of diseases that could grow to a pandemics arising through the contamination of water caused by the shoddy transport facilities and unguarded water supply routes is also rising. Many cases of ailments due to the consumption of contaminated water have been reported in the city recently.
There are still areas in Mumbai where water availability is still a severe problem, and those who have been living on water transported on tankers through rackets run by various mafia dons who have been extorting money from the unfortunate citizens for the past 15 to 20 years only highlights how privileged and ungrateful we might have become.
We still have time, and all is not lost yet. It is about time that we pull up our socks and decide to take a stand today to secure a better tomorrow. Let's hope, there are enough of us out there who can see what is happening and decide to do something to remedy this minor ailment which could ultimately, if not handled with the requisite prudence, prove lethal.
Give me your views on this!!!!
5 comments:
I appreciate ur viewpoint my thoughtful friend and I really hope that the Political Party which comes in power actually takes some productive steps to chuck out the problem because this is really becoming a bottleneck issue from the environmental point of view.
Moreover with the Mercury Rising so much now-a-days (can u imagine, Mumbai touched 45 Degrees!!!) and the rainfalls dripping in on scanty amounts (like 2008), the scarcity of water is gonna be furthermore down the line....
So I too hope that ppl understand the importance of water, not just by saying that "Water Is LIFE" but by contributing in some way or the other to procure it for someone who really needs it badly!!!
I'm keeping my fingers crossed!!!
Water wastage is a vital part of everyday scenario, and its disappointing how little the civic bodies bother to do. However, the final axe will fall on those who don’t believe in conservation of water. Its high time we realize that each single drop is precious. We are a nation blessed with monsoon but that won’t be a huge upside if continuation of such irresponsible wastage carries on.
Superb job, Shybu...like they say, water gets evaporated before the clouds r formed... similarly, its v who take action that helps form a better future...
Rightly said saif...water wastage is one thing that I truly hate. My geography teacher said 79% of earth is covered by water...huh??? if that's the case then why is it that people have to stand in huge ques for water? Take the case of Cauvery water issue, how tamil nadu and karnatak fought for it last year...bad.
You are doing good work. It is really important to raise awareness on issues such as this.
www.theivesinthenight.blogspot.com
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