22 March each year is
marked as World Water
Day. It focuses attention on the importance of freshwater and advocates the sustainable management of freshwater resources. The earth seems to be quite distinct among the other known celestial bodies as it has one important component that is water which covers three-fourths of its surface. This water is absolutely essential for the survival of all the life on this planet. However, the truth is that it is not given due credibility that it is worthy of.
The five elements of nature (panchamahabhuta) include water, earth, fire, air and ether (sky), and out of these elements water is considered to be the building block of life. The human body consists of water, and this biological fact is the rational point on its importance. Water makes up more than two thirds of the weight of the human body. The human brain is made up of 95% water while blood is 82% and lungs 90%. In fact, all the organs and their functions in our body depend on water for their functioning. Water serves as a lubricant, it forms the base for saliva, it forms the fluids that surround the joints, and moreover it regulates the body temperature, as the cooling and heating is distributed through perspiration. Water helps to alleviate constipation by moving food through the intestinal tract and thereby eliminating waste- the best detoxifying agent and regulates the metabolism. Therefore, it forms the very essence of life. This colorless and tasteless liquid is essential for all forms of growth and development. Providing water in the desired quantity and quality and at the right time and place has been a constant endeavor of all civilizations since time immemorial.
Nevertheless, it is important to remember that: the water that we have today is all the water we will ever have. New water is not created, but is continuously recycled on the Earth. The water we drink today is essentially the same water the dinosaurs drank.
Now the issue comes up where the water is and what are the problems associated with it? Unfortunately, while there is a lot of water on the earth, relatively little is actually available for drinking and other human uses. When Neil Armstrong saw the Earth from the Moon, it appeared blue! This is because water covers more than two-thirds of the Earth's surface, however, of all the water 97% of the water on earth is in the oceans therefore not readily available for daily human needs, the 3% of the water on earth is freshwater and out of that about 2.4% of the water on earth is permanently frozen in glaciers and at the polar ice caps, about 1/2 of 0.6% of the water on earth is groundwater and only about 1/100 of 0.6% of the water on earth is in the rivers and lakes. A well recognized fact is that a person can live about a month without food, but can live only about 1 week without water.
In the age when man has forgotten his origins and is blind even to his most essential needs for survival, water along with other resources has become the victim of his indifference. The importance of water in our everyday lives cannot be overlooked. Although it is ever-present, it is also ever-changing. To understand the problems we face, we need to look at how our water supplies are replenished, and how human activity affects this process. Besides the ever increasing problem of pollution, the paving over of the natural landscape and construction processes have led to less water infiltration into the earth and as a result the water table is lowered and less groundwater flows to streams and other water bodies, especially during the dry weather. Consequently, there is less evapotranspiration and natural cooling of the air by plants. Indeed, the ways in which water is perceived and managed are determined by cultural traditions, which are themselves determined by factors as diverse as geographical location. Water is not perceived the same way in Africa as it is in Asia or in Australia.
In the words of Mikhail Gorbachev, The President of Green Cross International, "Water, like religion and ideology, has the power to move millions of people. Since the very birth of human civilization, people have moved to settle close to it. People move when there is too little of it. People move when there is too much of it. People journey down it. People write, sing and dance about it. People fight over it. And all people, everywhere and every day, need it".
We need water to survive and prosper; without it, we would have no food to eat, no clothes to wear, no nature to admire and live within, and nothing to help us remain healthy. Since new water is not created, we must all do our part to protect this limited resource.
It is well documented that the worship of water occupied a prominent place in all the religions and early civilizations; it was regarded as a purifying, rejuvenating, as well as a soothsaying element, and was accordingly conceived of as inhabited by various beings.
If we look into the past, our ancient history, religious texts and epics give a good insight into the water storage and conservation systems that prevailed in those days. The Indus Valley Civilization, that flourished along the banks of the river Indus and other parts of western and northern India about 5,000 years ago, had one of the most sophisticated urban water supply and sewage systems in the world. The fact that the people were well acquainted with hygiene can be seen from the covered drains running beneath the streets of the ruins at both Mohenjodaro and Harappa. The ancient forts had their own water harvesting and storage system in the form of rock-cut cisterns, ponds, tanks and wells that are still in use today. In ancient times, houses in parts of western Rajasthan were built so that each had a rooftop water harvesting system. Rainwater from these rooftops was directed into underground tanks. This system can be seen even today in all the forts, palaces and houses of the region.
I think we must initiate drawing up a compendium of traditional and modern approaches to protecting, rehabilitating and harvesting freshwater sources other than surface and groundwater reserves that are commonly considered the only reserves of freshwater available to the modern world. They include techniques for obtaining freshwater from saline water, wastewater and even fog, and draw on concepts and methods dating back to the earliest days of humankind and save for our coming generations a secure future.
Talking about Jammu, this is very unfortunate like many other areas, that the region which is blessed with some of the finest water bodies is besieged with problems of pollution, contamination and effluence. Starting with the river Tawi which is a major left bank tributary of river Chenab, and originates from the lapse of Kali Kundi glacier in adjoining area south-west of Bhadarwah in Doda District, the condition is as with most of the rivers flowing through cities, this river enters the city of Jammu crystal clean and comes out dirty. The Jammu city has a unique geographical situation from drainage point of view. Every drop of waste water from old Jammu city including that of rain drains off quickly and finally reaches the river Tawi. Due to population increase in Jammu, the amount of domestic sewage has tremendously increased which discharges directly into the drains and eventually to the river Tawi. Also, the huge mass of deadly pollutants is daily spreading its tentacles unchecked, as vehicle after vehicle, belonging to Jammu Municipal Committee empty their stinking mass of city refuse into a huge dump. This has become horror of helpless residents in the fifty villages living around the area. Moreover, there is addition of agricultural wastes, pesticides and other synthetic chemicals into the river near Raipur, Satwari and industrial effluents from the SIDCO complex (Small scale Industries Development Corporation) find their way into Tawi through the Behlol stream (another tributary of Tawi). It is very unfortunate that there is hardly any sewage treatment plant in the whole course of 129 Kms. of the River Tawi and there is scarcity of water filters to suffice the whole population. The mighty river Tawi is, thus, getting more and more polluted. The people living down streams who are totally dependent upon river water for drinking, washing and bathing are suffering badly.
Besides many other small bawlis, ponds, streams and rivers like Devika in Udhampur, river Basantar in Samba, a number of ponds in villages of Jammu that were used resourcefully by the populace for drinking and other uses have faced problems of contagion, shrinkage and depletion.
There is one thing that we have to be aware of that is every one of us can lend a hand and save our nation and the world to be deprived of this wonderful reserve. It is to be realized that every person can make a difference, just like every drop in the ocean makes a difference. In the words of Mother Teresa, "We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean, but the ocean would be less because of that missing drop." We all need to honor, comprehend and respect water as our most precious resource so that we might just be able to pacify the global water crisis, if not completely eradicate it. It is high time that we draw on concepts and methods dating back to the earliest days of humankind and save for our coming generations a secure future. The need of the hour is sustainable water management, especially in the context of meeting the demands of an increasing population.
"The leaky tap drips day and night
Just fix it right or shut it tight,
It seems the earth with water abounds
But think its every drop that really counts".
"The tap is on you brush your teeth
The water flows, you soap your feet
Just think of all the water lost
To close the tap, what does it cost?
The water bottle you take to school
The water in it is nice and cool
You drink a bit, the rest you throw,
The water could help a plant grow." |
