WATER CONSERVATION.
Recently on 22nd March 2005 round the Globe �World Water Day� was observed by all Governing Bodies, and today it seems to be the biggest concern for the survival of humanity, but at the same time many of us are least bothered about this matter, and many may even think �Its none of my business, let the authorities handle it�. Well, its high time we all better take some interest concerning this problem or else the situation could soon get out of hand. At present this same topic is being discussed at the UN, and the most concerned is WHO, at the same time many a articles are being published on the News Media & Internet. Here are a few facts and figures for everyone�s awareness.
In 1992, the UN General Assembly declared March 22 would be �World Water Day�. Begining in 1993 World wide nations used the day to raise public awareness about Water Conservation, this year�s world water day was guided by the theme � Water for Life�, this day in the past years was represented with different themes, such as �Water for Disasters� in 2004, �Water for the Future� in 2003, �Water for Development� in 2002, �Water for Health� in 2001, and �Water for the 21st Century� in 2000.
No water, no future, most people don�t value water because of its low cost, but in the 21st Century we will definitely face challenges in finding new sources of water. For the past decade, different governments have considered introducing controls on water use during rainy and dry seasons in a bid to not only promote the efficient use of water, but also to encourage Water Conservation. Have you ever imagined for only a moment what life would be like without readily available water? Do you know, that in India most of us use approximately 50 gallons / person per day? In Europe that�s approximately 37 gallons per day, remember, that�s per capita, for a family of 4 that is 200 gallons.
Have you ever imagined the amount of water that we utilize for our daily needs? I don�t think so, the figures are somewhat like this; We use about 1/3 for our personal hygiene, a 10 minute shower consumes about 15 gallons, we use another 1/3 for washing clothes and dishes and another 25 � 30 % for flushing toilets� the balance we utilize for cooking and drinking. What would we do if we turned on the tap and nothing came out? In some rural places in India, finding or getting water is a never ending problem and some days are worse than others. Just try to imagine your life in those conditions�everyday you or your wife, even all of your young children, hike to water, if you are lucky the water is a nearby river. But most folks are not so lucky, and the water is in a lake or pond somewhere, may be as far as 3 to 4 Km away, 3 to 4 hours everyday, just to get enough water for the day.. for drinking.. for food preparation, none for bathing.. none for washing hands.
Well, at least you have water, but it�s the same water you share with your livestock, water you share with clothes washing, and water that you share with latrines and industrial waste, and guess what�s used for fertilizers. It�s the same water which carries Cholera, and Hepatitis E & A, and many other untold viruses and bacteria, and parasites.
India is a huge and diverse country with a population of over 1 Billion people. Over 40% live in poverty with lower caste Dalits and increasingly women, making up the largest proportion of poor people. Population growth is rapid, particularly in urban areas due to migration from rural villages� In a country so large, there are vast numbers without proper sanitation and water, over 170 Million people don�t have access to safe water and 69% of the population (690 Million people, 10 times the UK population) lack adequate sanitation, as a result 600,000 children under five die from Diarrheal diseases every year, which is approximately 1,600 per day. Water Aid India (WAI) has been struggling for quite some time for the benefit of the needy and have succeeded in providing over 1.7 Million people with access to safe water, effective sanitation and hygiene promotion, at the same time were instrumental in persuading the Indian Government to change their sanitation subsidies to incorporate water aids low cost latrines.
Most of the time Governments ignore that the most obvious benefit of access to safe water and sanitation is a reduction in disease specially to the poverty stricken, in countries such as Nigeria, Ethiopia, Thailand, Bangladesh, India etc. poor people, particularly women after spending hours each day trekking to the nearest water source, waiting their turn in long queues for water, some buy water from expensive water vendors who get their water from dubious sources, due to which most people suffer from stomach disease, cupful by cupful, the people from developing countries are being poisoned by their drinking water.
Around the Globe growing pressure on land for food, fuel, fiber and fodder to industrial expansion, and consequent need for infrastructural facilities due to ever increasing population have given rise to competing and conflicting demand on finite land and water resources. Environmental constituents of the earth, particularly of out country (India) are subjected to varying degree of degradation as consequences of over exploitation and increased pollution hazard.
The crucial challenge in present situation which we face is to evolve measures or approaches to restore the sustainability of our ecosystem. Figures are as follows:-
- 3.25 billion human populations by 2025 in 52 countries will live in condition of acute water shortage.
- 1.2 billion human population have access to unsafe drinking water resources due to large scale pollution.
- 120 billion tons of top soils are washed away annually, carrying 8 � 9 million tons of nutrients
With it.
- In India, we have just 0.06 hectare of forest cover per capita as compared to world of 1.6 hectare due to large scale deforestation.
- India alone accounts 15% of world�s domestic animal population on only 2% of world geographical area fodder scarcity.
- In India, drought prone areas represents about 19%.
- Monsoon which brings more than 90% of the yearly precipitation in India, occurs in a period of just 100 days, 50% of which occurs in just 25 � 30 days.
With such scarcity of safe water before us, can we all think of saving at least a cup full per day to kill our thirst when necessary? As far as I know man can live without food but not without water. Compared to all other states in India I feel that people in Goa are rich with safe water which is �Well water� (Baimchem Udok), at the same time water from rivers and streams is in abundance at all times, I have known from my childhood we all used well water for all purpose, but after the Govt. introduced tap water in Goa the �Wells� have been forgotten, no one takes care of cleaning these same wells which served our ancestors and us as well, in some places some wells are filled with mud & rubble and leveled, reasons not known. I have observed this personally, there are days when water taps in Goa run dry, but even than people don�t want to fetch a pot (Bindul or Kolso) of water from the �Well�. Should we call it laziness or negligence, what ever you think of.
I only have one message for everyone, just do as much possible within your capacity to conserve water, because according to global water statistics very soon we�ll be running short of safe water, which is expected to be by the year 2025, also remember, our own tears won�t be enough to give us even a single sip, there�s much more we all can do to Conserve Water, or else our final stage will be like a �Fish without Water�. Therefore do something positive which will make others aware-off, who will be much obliged to follow your footsteps.
Best wishes to all. Sanny Vaz.
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