India’s is heading for a big water crisis for its burgeoning population.
A report by the country’s planning body – Niti Aayog – says, India stares “the worst water crisis in its history with about 60 crore (600 million) people facing high to extreme water stress and about two lakh (200,000) people dying every year due to inadequate access to safe water.
“By 2030, the country’s water demand is projected to be twice the available supply, implying severe water scarcity for hundreds of millions of people and an eventual six per cent loss in the country’s GDP.’’
In the northern states such as Punjab and Haryana, water-consuming crops such as paddy have driven water levels to very deep levels.
India can survive this crisis only:
1: Bans water-consuming crops such as paddy.
2: Stops subsidized electricity to farmers.
3: Interlinks rivers to divert water to scarcity-hit areas.
4: Stores and harvests rain water.
5: Controls population by strict family planning.
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