Water Resource

Considering the importance of agriculture to the economy of the country, irrigation gains significance, especially on account of the  uncertainty and uneven distribution of rainfall. India, fortunately, has good water resources in the shape of a number of rivers, some of which (specially those located in the north) are perennial. We have yet to utilize them to their full potential.

Water resources of India can be divided into two parts namely surface water and ground-water. It is estimated that the country, on an average, gets nearly 125 cm water through rainfall. Only about 45% of this flows through the rivers called surface water. Rest of it either evaporates or percolates into the earth. The ground-water resources in India are unequally distributed on account of unequal rainfall and diversities in the soil types and structure of the rocks. Maximum surface as well as ground-water is available in the north due to plain topography and generosity of the Himalayas.

Surface Water

As regards surface water, India cannot afford to allow water to run waste and must strive to bring under control as much of its water resources as possible. At the same time, it must work towards a comprehensive, national policy for river basin flows. As things are, the total volume of water used in several river basins exceeds the total surface flows, indicating the re-use water through the exploitation of groundwater reservoir and the re-cycling of surface drainage through canal and tank systems. In these areas, where there is excessive use (most project command areas), the problems of controlling salinity and water logging and of maintaining water quality at a non toxic level for downstream users are likely to increase, particularly in the drier parts, of the country. For the maximum utilization of surface water the country must solve inter-state disputes of water expeditiously before we dream of national water grid which would inevitably involve huge financial resources, high energy inputs and sophisticated technology.

While the river system irrigates the whole country, tanks and wells have traditionally served areas which are in the drier parts of the country. Wells and tubewells are mainly found in the alluvial plains and nurture the largest area under irrigation in the country.

Groundwater

Groundwater is the water that occurs below the surface of the earth. It is generally found in a geological formation commonly referred to as an aquifer.

India, with a mainly agricultural economy, depends heavily on the availability of water for a good year. Rainfall characterized by seasonal and annual variations, is not a very reliable source of water supply in most parts of the country. Availability of groundwater is, therefore, a major asset that can greatly influence agriculture. While surface water potential has been used to the full in several states, the same cannot be said of groundwater. Nevertheless, the droughts that periodical failures of rainfall bring, place a great strain on groundwater resources.

Groundwater offers natural advantages over surface water. Groundwater, for instance, does not suffer seepage losses as surface reservoirs do. Loss through evaporation is also minimal. With the rapid increase in population and the consequent pressure on land new areas have been brought under irrigation. But such surface water is not sufficient to satisfy the agricultural demand for water. Industrial demand for water has also been rising phenomenally.

India has high groundwater potential. The ground water reserves of the country are about 3700 million hectare metres (m ha m), almost ten times the annual rainfall. Recent investigations have indicated that the hard rock of peninsular India - nearly 70 per cent of the country’s land mass - holds more water than was assumed earlier. The estimate is that the annual exploitable potential may be around 42mham, of which only about 10 m ha m is being exploited at present.

Of the total 42 m ha m of usable potential, 21.9 per cent is in Uttar Pradesh, but only 29 per cent of this is being used. Madhya Pradesh has 4.1 per cent of the usable potential but only 8 per cent of it is used. Punjab, with 3.1 per cent of the usable potential utilizes 98 per cent of it, whereas Tamil Nadu, with 6.4 per cent of the usable potential, uses only 62 per cent. Haryana utilizes 75 per cent of its 2.1 per cent usable potential. Delhi uses the largest proportion (88 per cent) of its meager potential (0.6 per cent). Eleven states use less than the average from 1 per cent to 24 per cent. Nagaland and Manipur have not exploited their usable potential at all. T he general inference is that there is yet a great deal of potential in most states that can be fruitfully utilized.

In all drought-prone areas, there is a compulsion to utilize groundwater resources. For instance, Maharashtra as a whole qualifies as an area with high groundwater potential. Here, the areas of the  Western Ghats (rain-shadow areas) i.e. Deccan Maharashtra, are prone to drought. It is in these areas that well irrigation has been well developed (irrigated sugarcane is the crop). Western Rajasthan, major parts of Gujarat, interior Karnataka, Tamil Nadu and the interior of Southern Andhra Pradesh fall under this zone and in all these areas well irrigation assumes great importance. This, unfortunately, has resulted in ground water depletion in many districts in this zone. A comprehensive system of management for efficient and effective use of groundwater has now become a necessary there. Under the Drought-prone Area Program, efforts are being made to work towards a comprehensive water management and monitoring system through out the country. Twenty-one districts in the country with about 131 blocks are under the Desert Development Program. The Drought-prone Area Program is being implemented in 615 blocks of 91 districts. In all, ill districts with 746 blocks benefit from these two programmes of the State and Central Governments.

Water Bodies

Water bodies, especially the rivers, are India’s lifelines. Although water is available in adequate amounts in several regions, the aerial and temporal imbalance is severe.

The largest use of water is in agriculture and industry. Due to over exploitation of ground as well as surface water, there will be a shortfall in meeting agricultural demands even if there is total withdrawal from all available resources. In no other area of resources planning are the uncertainties so many. This is because the rainfall rhythm, so highly variable in space and time, determines the magnitude of surface flows and groundwater recharge.

To augment the resources to meet these needs, India has to consider three aspects in a new light.

• (i)         The cost of delayed decisions in inter-state water disputes, in which as much as 20 million hectares of irrigation potential are locked up in legal tangles,
• (ii)        under-utilization of potential,
• (iii)       and technologies for augmenting water resources supplies are insufficient and backward.

India cannot afford to allow water to run waste and must strive to bring under control as much of its water resources as possible. At the same time, it must work towards a comprehensive national plan for river basin flows. As things stand, the total volume of water used in several river basins exceeds the total surface flows, indicating the re-use of water though the exploitation of groundwater reservoirs and the re-cycling of surface drainage through canal and tank systems. In these areas, where there is excessive use (most project command areas), the problems of controlling of salinity and waterlogging and of maintaining water quality at a non-toxic level for downstream users are likely to increase, particularly in the drier parts of the country.

In the present decade, the potential for irrigation from the river systems is far above the developed facilities. It is estimated that 167,5000 million cubic metres of water are available from India’s rivers, despite such intensive canal and well irrigation as it found in, for instance, the basins of the Indus river, where the utilization is 140 per cent of the surface flow. However, only 55,000 million cubic metres can be utilized in the entire country for irrigating the land.

While the river systems irrigate the whole country tanks and wells have traditionally served areas which are in the drier parts of the country. Wells and tubewells are mainly found in the alluvial plain and mature the largest area under irrigation in the country.

National Water Policy 2002

The Salient features of National Water Policy – 2002 are as follows:

• Water is a prime natural resource, a basic human need and a precious national asset. Planning, development and management of water resources need to be governed by national perspectives.
• A well developed information system for water related data at national/state level should be established with a net-work of data banks and data bases integrating and strengthening the existing central and state level agencies.
• Water resources available to the country should be brought within the category of utilizable resources to the maximum possible extent.
• Non-conventional methods for utilization of water such as through inter-basin transfers, artificial recharge of ground water and desalination of brackish or sea water as well as traditional water conservation practices like rainwater harvesting, including roof-top rainwater harvesting, need to be practiced to further increase the utilizable water resources. Promotion of frontier research and development, in a focused manner, for these techniques is necessary.
• Water resources development and management will have to be planned for a hydrological unit. Appropriate river basin organizations should be established for the planned development and management of the river basins.
• Water should be made available to water short areas by transfer from other areas including transfer from one river basin to another, after taking into account the requirements of the areas/basins.
• Planning of water resources development projects should, as far as possible, be for multi-purpose with an integrated and multi-disciplinary approach having regard to human and ecological aspects including those of disadvantaged sections of the society.
• In the allocation of water, first priority should be given for drinking water, followed by irrigation, hydro-power, ecology, agro-industries and non-agricultural industries, navigation and other uses, in that order.
• The exploitation of groundwater should be regulated with reference to recharge possibilities and consideration of social equity. The detrimental environmental consequences of over-exploitation of ground water need to be effectively prevented.
• Adequate emphasis needs to be given to the physical and financial sustainability of existing water resources facilities. There is need to ensure that the water charges for various uses should be fixed such as to cover at least the operation and maintenance charges initially and a part of the capital costs subsequently.
• Management of the water resources for diverse uses should incorporate a participatory approach by involving users and other stakeholders alongwith various governmental agencies, in an effective and decisive manner.
• Private sector participation should be encouraged in planning, development and management of water resources projects for diverse uses, wherever feasible.
• Both surface water and ground water should be regularly monitored for quality. Effluents should be treated to acceptable levels and standards before discharging them into natural streams. Minimum flow should be ensured in the perennial streams for maintaining ecology.
• Efficiency of utilization should be improved in all the diverse uses of water and conservation consciousness promoted through education, regulation, incentives and disincentives.
• Land erosion by sea or river should be minimized by suitable cost-effective measures. Indiscriminate occupation of, and economic activity in coastal areas and flood plain zones should be regulated.
• Needs of drought-prone areas should be given priority in the planning of project for development of water resources. These areas should be made less vulnerable through various measures.
• The water sharing / distribution amongst the states should be guided by a national perspective with due regard to water resources availability and needs within the river basin.
• Training and research efforts should be intensified as an integral part of water resources development.

National Water Policy, 2012

• Training and research efforts should be intensified as an integral part of water resources development.
• The water sharing / distribution amongst the states should be guided by a national perspective with due regard to water resources availability and needs within the river basin.  
• Needs of drought-prone areas should be given priority in the planning of project for development of water resources. These areas should be made less vulnerable through various measures.
• Land erosion by sea or river should be minimized by suitable cost-effective measures. Indiscriminate occupation of, and economic activity in coastal areas and flood plain zones should be regulated.
• Efficiency of utilization should be improved in all the diverse uses of water and conservation consciousness promoted through education, regulation, incentives and disincentives.
• Both surface water and ground water should be regularly monitored for quality. Effluents should be treated to acceptable levels and standards before discharging them into natural streams. Minimum flow should be ensured in the perennial streams for maintaining ecology.
• Private sector participation should be encouraged in planning, development and management of water resources projects for diverse uses, wherever feasible.
• Management of the water resources for diverse uses should incorporate a participatory approach by involving users and other stakeholders along with various governmental agencies, in an effective and decisive manner.
• Adequate emphasis needs to be given to the physical and financial sustainability of existing water resources facilities. There is need to ensure that the water charges for various uses should be fixed such as to cover at least the operation and maintenance charges initially and a part of the capital costs subsequently.
• The exploitation of groundwater should be regulated with reference to recharge possibilities and consideration of social equity. The detrimental environmental consequences of over-exploitation of ground water need to be effectively prevented.
• In the allocation of water, first priority should be given for drinking water, followed by irrigation, hydro-power, ecology, agro-industries and non-agricultural industries, navigation and other uses, in that order.
• Planning of water resources development projects should, as far as possible, be for multi-purpose with an integrated and multi-disciplinary approach having regard to human and ecological aspects including those of disadvantaged sections of the society.
• Water should be made available to water short areas by transfer from other areas including transfer from one river basin to another, after taking into account the requirements of the areas/basins.
• Water resources development and management will have to be planned for a hydrological unit. Appropriate river basin organizations should be established for the planned development and management of the river basins.
• Non-conventional methods for utilization of water such as through inter-basin transfers, artificial recharge of ground water and desalination of brackish or sea water as well as traditional water conservation practices like rainwater harvesting, including roof-top rainwater harvesting, need to be practiced to further increase the utilizable water resources. Promotion of frontier research and development, in a focused manner, for these techniques is necessary.
• Water resources available to the country should be brought within the category of utilizable resources to the maximum possible extent.
• A well developed information system for water related data at national/state level should be established with a network of data banks and data bases integrating and strengthening the existing central and state level agencies.
• Planning, development and management of water resources need to be governed by national perspectives.

Land Resources

• Land is an important natural resource, serving as storage for water and nutrients used by plants and other living organisms.
• India ranks seventh in the world in terms of land area and second in terms of population. More specifically, India has about 2 per cent of the world’s geographical area, and 1.5 per cent of the world’s forest and pasture lands—which have to support 18 per cent of the world’s human population and 15 per cent of world livestock population.
• About 43 per cent of the land area, formed of plains, provides opportunity for cultivation. The mountainous areas, accounting for about 30 per cent of the surface area of the country, are storehouses of natural resources; they are also important for their scenic beauty and ecological aspects.
• The plateau area covers about 27 per cent of the total area. It has rich reserves of mineral resources besides forests and arable lands. The mountains and plateaus also have fertile river valleys offering favourable locations for human concentration.
• However, land is a limited resource, and the increasing human and animal population has reduced the availability of land over the years. The per capita availability of land was 0.89 hectare in 1951; it declined to 0.37 hectare in 1991 and is projected to go down to 0.20 hectare by 2035.

Favourable Features:

• India is endowed with a long crop-growing season except in the mountainous regions—this has made our land more valuable from the point of view of crop and natural vegetation.
• A long crop-growing season also means a wide variety of crops.
• The vast landmass of the country is endowed with a diversity of soils, owing to differences in geomorphology, climate, vegetation and topography.
• Each soil type has its characteristics, suitable for different economic purposes.
• There is a large reservoir of surface water in perennial rivers.

Unfavourable Feature:

• The availability of moisture is a restraining factor. The moisture supply through monsoon rainfall is concentrated during three-four months.
• The rainy season is also the summer season, when the temperatures are generally high. This results in a loss of moisture through evaporation. Also, higher intensity of rainfall induces higher run-off and flooding in the rivers. A large area of the country gets inadequate or deficient rainfall.
• The uneven distribution of rainfall also creates problems for plant growth.
• Almost all the soil types of the country are deficient in either organic matter or moisture or both.
• In view of the spatial as well as temporal variations of rainfall, irrigation is the only source of assured water supply for stable yields from cultivation.

MULTI - PURPOSE RIVER VALLEY PROJECTS

A multi-purpose project consists in the formation construction of a huge artificial lake of storage dam built across a river. The flow of water is controlled by sluice gates. It serves a variety of purposes such as irrigation generation of hydroelectric power, flood control navigation, recreation, tourist attraction, supply of industrial and drinking water, fish breeding, prevention of soil erosion and afforestation, control of malaria. The easiest way to remember these purposes is the anagram :

FINEST

F -        Flood control, fish breeding (pisciculture) afforestation.

I -         Irrigation, Industrial Development (Water Supply)

N -       Electricity generation

S -        Soil conservation, silt control, storage of water.

T -        Transport and Tourist attraction.

Development of multipurpose projects on the lines of Tennessee Valley Authority in the U.S.A. has been the most significant post-Independence development. Damodar Valley Authority in the heart of the “Indian Ruhr” in Bihar-West Bengal was the first multipurpose project completed in India. It differed from earlier irrigation projects in ways more than one. The project generally involves construction of big dams on the main river as well as its tributaries. This helps in controlling floods and in regulating irrigation waters downstream particularly to meet the growing demands of the long dry season. Besides conserving excessive rain and flood waters it also helps to conserve soil a much more important resource for the mankind. The work of soil conservation is further boosted up through systematic afforestation program in the entire catchment and water-shed areas. The impounded water is carefully channeled through high watersheds repeatedly to generate hydro-electricity. This hydel power scores over thermal electricity in more ways than one. Firstly it is clean and pollution free source of energy. Secondly it is a renewable source of energy.

Thirdly, it has the least recurring costs. The only point that goes against it is  a relatively high initial investment and a long gestation period. It is only a bye-product since the entire water used for generating power is utilized for irrigation. Such big river valley projects may provide canals for navigation as water transport is the cheapest mode of transport for heavy end bulky commodities like iron-ore, coal etc. These well afforested lands provide the most needed seclusion to various species of wildlife whose protection has become a high priority to ensure continuance of bio-diversity. The water bodies are stocked with fish and other water life which can be developed and harvested under well-regulated conditions. These “modern temples of new India” attract tourists for holidaying and promote tourism. This is why their nomenclature of multipurpose projects becomes apt. Many others, however, have been developed only for irrigation or power resources utilization. The total number of such regional development projects in the country is more than 900, out of which over 590 have been completed so far and work on the remaining is in various stages of execution.

POWER RESOURCES

Indian power sector thrives mainly by two different types of energy-generating methods : (1) Hydro-Electricity (2) Thermal power. Of late several other resources are exploited to derive power. Among these nuclear power, solar energy, tidal energy and geo-thermal energy and important.

Hydro-electricity generation

The basic principle of hydro-electricity generation is very simple. Flow of water rotates turbines which ultimately convert the kinetic energy of water to electrical energy. To get the uninterrupted flow of water, some favourable geo-graphical as well as economic conditions are desirable. Uneven topography, heavy to moderate rainfall and necessary technological know-how are needed for hydro-electricity development.

Considering all these related factors it may be said that India has a vast hydel-power potential. Only the seasonal rain is major obstacles for rapid development.

Development and Growth

Four types of potential water sources were earmarked for hydel-power generation. A cording to importance, these are:

1.         Himalayan snowfed rivers.

2.         Tidal rivers of coastal areas.

3.         Waterfalls in high mountains.

4.         Peninsular rain dependent rivers.

After independence, due to dearth of coal, only southern states of India took proper initiative to harness more hydro-electric power. Hydro-electricity based states are Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Kerala, Punjab, Orissa and Jammu & Kashmir. Some other states party dependent upon hydel power are Assam, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh etc.

Karnataka 

The first hydel-power plant in India was commissioned here at Shivasamudram in 1900. At Cauvery River, Krishnarjun Sagar lake was constructed to facilitate water supply to Simsapura hydel power project. Another notable hydel power project, named after Mahatma Gandhi was erected near the Jog falls in 1948. Work of Sharavati hydro-electric project(1300)has been completed on near Jog falls.

Tamil Nadu 

Some of the most ambitious hydel power projects of India are located in Tamil Nadu, Notable among these are Pykara, Mettur, Pappanasam, Moyar, Kundah, Periyar and Pandiyar.

Oldest among these are Pykara project established in 1932 on Pykar river. The largest project in the state is Mettur Hydro-electric project which provides the entire electric supply to the adjacent industrial areas.

In Tinnevelly district on Tamraparni river, Papanasam project had been constructed to meet the demand of Chennai metropolis. Tamil Nadu is totally dependent upon its hydro electric power. During the summer months, due to scarcity of water, hydel plants remain idle. Tamil Nadu, in that season, faces acute power cuts.

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh is dependent  on both thermal and hydel power. Major hydel power projects are Tungabhadra, Srisailam, Nagar junasagar. Regarding the development of power resources, Andhra Pradesh is still lagging behind the national average.

Kerala

Without having any coal reserve, it is quite obvious that Kerala will be entirely dependent on hydro-electric power. Because of heavy precipitation on the slopes of Sahyadri, Annamalai and Cardamon hills, stress was given on developing hydel power projects in the state. Major hydel power projects are Alwaye, Idikki, Kuttiyadi, Sholayer and Sabarigiri.

Uttar Pradesh

Number of snow-fed large rivers along the numerous tributaries and canals are criss-crossing Uttar Pradesh. This ample supply of river water, huge demand in the newly born industries and large funds bestowed by both the central and state governments created favourable conditions to develop hydel power project in the state. At present Uttar Pradesh is the third largest hydel power producing state in India. Biggest among the projects is Rihand, followed by Obra, Yamuna, Sharda and Upper Ganga hydel projects.

West Bengal

Besides some in D.V.C., Paglejohra & Rammam in Darjeeling, Jaldhaka in North Bengal are other important hydel projects of the state.

Madhya Pradesh

Chambal project is the single hydel power project in Madhya Pradesh.

Punjab-Haryana

The famous Bhakra Nangal project contributes a substantial amount of  hydel power to Punjab and Haryana.

Orissa

Production of hydel power in Hirakund and Muchkund made Orissa a surplus power-producing state.

Apart from these big power projects; Baramulla in Jammu & Kashmir, Jogindarnagar in Himachal Pradesh and Subarnarekha project in Bihar are notable hydel power project of India.

India ranks fourth in the world after China, USA and Russia in terms of number of dams. The country has about 4710 completed large dams.

The Central Electricity Authority (CEA) undertook reassessment of the hydropower resources of the country in 1980s. CEA had identified 845 economically feasible schemes in various river basin of the country. On this basis, the total theoretical potential at 60% load factor was assessed as 301,117 MW and the economic potential at 84,044 MW. 

 Hydropower Projects 

A project with capacity of 130 kW installed at Sidrapong (Darjeeling) in the year 1897 was the first hydropower installation in India

At the time of independence (1947), the IC[1] of hydropower projects was 508 MW, which was about 37% of the total IC at that time. But with the taking up of five-year plans, work began on many multi-purpose river valley projects, ‘temples of modern India’. Bhakra dam was the notable showcase for a long time to come.

NTPC is planning to set up the country’s biggest hydel project in Arunchal Pradesh.  Thehydro power project at Siang will alone generate between 10,000 to 12,000 MW when completed, making it the largest hydroelectric dam in South Asia. And 27,000 MW when collaborated with other power companies.