Water is life
The recent dry spell across Jammu and Kashmir has made us to realise the true importance of water. The region which boasts of abundant water resources was running deficient in rains by more than 80 percent and as a result most of the springs that cater to the needs of the people ran dry.
The situation was so grim that springs that have been active for centuries dried up and thousands of households were on the brink of facing acute shortage of drinking water.
Springs like Kokernag, Achabal, Aripal and many others ran dry and people had to fight hard to secure water to drink and sustain themselves. The situation became all the more complex when major rivers like Jhelum, Veshav, Sindh and others too witnessed alarming decrease in water level.
The state of affairs was so intense that at many places people used to cross the Jhelum river by foot as the water level was not even knee deep at many places. Even the Weir at Chattabal has to be lowered down so that water could be retained and the house boats and aquatic life in the famed river could be saved.
Notably, water source for all the major rivers and rivulets in Kashmir is sourced from snowmelt glaciers. All these sources of water have supported life and livelihood for centuries. In recent times, however, the valley underwent radical change with natural springs evaporating, glaciers melting at a rapid pace and rainfalls becoming unpredictable.
Based on studies conducted by various groups, it is believed that Kashmir has lost nearly 18 percent of its glaciers during the past decades. Furthermore, valley’s lifeline, Jhelum River, is facing pollution due to untreated sewage, agricultural waste runoff, and indiscriminate dumping of waste. Wetlands such as Hokersar, which were once large and full of life, are disappearing at a fast rate.
The famed Dal Lake too has met the same fate and even Asia’s largest fresh water Lake ‘Wular’ too has witnessed tremendous human interference taking a heavy toll on it.
What is more shocking is that Kashmir too is falling into the vicious trap of ‘Global warming’ which has amplified glacial melt in the Himalayas. Glaciers are melting at a fast face which at the first place create floods but eventually decrease perennial river flow, which affects irrigation and drinking sources.
The issue is quite grave and we need to understand it fast so that potential steps are taken to avoid huge damage to our environs and overall sustenance.
What we need right now is a scientific solution to the water needs and emphasis on conservation of this precious resource.
Our water management and conservation solutions need to be in sync with the local needs and details. The small catchment reservoirs and springs which have been overlooked need to be revived fast and measures need to be put in place to stop all types of pollution to these water sources.
More importantly, the human interference and the stress on our natural surroundings too needs to be brought to the lowest levels. The unplanned calls for more and more tourist arrivals and that too at places which were hitherto unexposed to human footfall needs to be revived.
What is more important is that water as a resource can fetch us more revenues and profits rather than dry patches of streams that usually become a norm due to unplanned growth.
