The situation has reached a crisis point with Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Minister Atishi’s indefinite hunger strike since last Friday, which led to his hospitalization earlier in the day due to his deteriorating condition. health.
The crisis prompted AAP’s Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh to announce plans to raise the issue in Parliament. Experts emphasize the need to find long-term sustainable solutions, beyond interstate water conflicts, in this development context.
Nitin Bassi, senior program officer at the Council on Energy, Environment and Water (CEEW), pointed out that relying solely on the release of water from upper riparian states like Haryana will not solve the underlying problems. He highlighted the importance of addressing systemic inefficiencies and adopting innovative water management strategies. “In addition to increasing water, we also need to focus on how to plug the leaks that are occurring in the water supply system, and we also need to make the reuse of treated wastewater widespread. I think that it will soon be difficult to fill this gap.” he said.
Shilp Verma, deputy country representative at the International Water Management Institute, echoed Bassi’s sentiments, emphasizing the critical role of groundwater management. “The main problem is that we have exhausted a supply of water that we had for the last 25 years, which is groundwater. Groundwater actually meets 50% of the demand in Delhi,” Verma noted.
He argued that perpetual conflicts over surface water between Delhi and Haryana overshadow a more reliable and poorly managed resource: groundwater.
“Unless we manage this resource better, I think that every summer, with climate change and precipitation variability, all major urban centers will face this problem. We can extract water from the ground, use it in summer, and then we need to replenish this resource by using our rainwater better,” advised Verma.
He called for a paradigm shift in water management, pleading for cities like Delhi to become self-sufficient in water resources. “We need to stop depending on upper riparian states. Cities like Delhi need to step up and say we are going to become water positive. If we are going to use a billion gallons a day, then we are also going to create these thousands, i.e. by recharging groundwater, collecting rainwater or treating our wastewater,” he proposed.
Verma also highlighted the potential of treated wastewater as an important resource. “80% of the water that we use or that the Delhi government supplies is generated as wastewater. We can treat it and reuse it. These are all things we can do to create new water resources without depending on the politics of interstate relations disputes,” he concluded.
The current political impasse has also attracted the attention of international observers. Ratings agency Moody’s has highlighted the urgency of investing in water infrastructure in India, warning that increasing water stress could impact the country’s sovereign credit profile.
Edited excerpts
Q: Bassi, tell us, is it just a problem that Haryana is not releasing enough water? Because we are hearing the same allegations made by Delhi for the last 10-15 years. Every summer, we hear this allegation that Haryana is not discharging enough water. Do you think this is the only problem, or are we not ensuring that different areas of Delhi are planned in the right way for the future?
Bassi: This problem has existed for a long time, and in summer the problem becomes worse because the demand for water increases. This year we have also experienced high temperatures, irrigation demand has increased, domestic supply demand has increased and evaporation from existing reservoirs has increased. Due to this, the water allocated to Delhi has also been reduced.
If we continue to discuss it, Delhi will use it when the upper riparian state releases the water. I think this still won’t solve our deficit. So, in addition to increasing water, we also need to focus on how to plug the leaks that are occurring in the water supply system, and we also need to make the reuse of treated wastewater widespread. Without this, I think it would be difficult to quickly close this gap.
Q: We have a Jal Shakti ministry, but the national capital, which comes in summer, is always in deficit in water supply. How can we ensure that we are working with a 20-year vision for water supply to a city like Delhi?
Verma: The main problem is that we have exhausted a water supply in the last 25 years, namely groundwater. Groundwater services account for 50% of demand in Delhi.
Delhi, Haryana and other states may continue to struggle for surface water, but the most reliable source of water we have is groundwater. And it’s a resource that we have managed poorly. So unless we manage this resource better, I think every summer, with climate change and precipitation variability, all major urban centers will face this problem.
We can extract water from the ground and use it in the summer, then replenish this resource by making better use of our rainwater. I think this is the vision that cities like Delhi need to have. We must stop depending on the condition of the upper banks. Cities like Delhi must take the lead and assert that we will become water positive. Suppose we use thousands of millions of gallons per day. In this case, we will also create these thousands of people by replenishing groundwater, collecting rainwater or treating our wastewater. 80% of the water we use or that the Delhi government supplies is generated as wastewater. We can process it and reuse it. This is all we can do to create new water resources without depending on the politics of interstate conflict.
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