| چکیده انگلیسی مقاله |
Water is expected to become an issue of concern in very near future keeping in mind the fast depleting and/or degrading water resources. The increasing scarcity of water is clearly reflected in the current negative water balance in the northwest region of Indo-Gangetic Plains (IGP). With the present annual demand of about 66 billion m3 (BCM) of water in agricultural most productive region (Punjab) in IGP, the available water in the state including annual replenishable water is 53 BCM, leading to a deficit of 13 BCM, which is being met by overexploiting the already exploited ground waters. This has led to a fall in groundwater level to the extent of 65 cm every year. With climate becoming harsher due to rising temperatures and ill-distributed rains, the demand for water in agricultural sector may rise further. On the other hand, industrial growth and improved living standards of general public are expected to raise water demand in these sectors at the cost of agricultural sector, thereby threatening the food security of the region. Apart from depleting water resources, the water quality degradation is another issue adding to its scarcity. The increasing salinity, sodicity and heavy metal concentration in the ground waters is being witnessed. The untreated sewage water in all the cities and towns of the state is finding its way in the streams and rivers thereby not only polluting the surface waters but also the ground waters especially in the vicinity of these streams and rivers. The water resources, be it river water, ground water, rainfall, re-circulated water, are inter-connected and cannot be seen in isolation for their management. There is a dire need to manage these resources in an integrated way. To sustain the water resources for the coming generations, it is important to manage these across different sectors (inter-sectoral) instead of doing it in piecemeal within a particular sector (intra-sectoral), as per the prevailing practice. This paper highlights a multi-pronged strategy to be formulated based on the concepts of (i) increasing the quantum of existing water, (ii) improving the groundwater recharge and (iii) conservation of water through its judicious use in all the sectors. |
